Many a gardener has suddenly discovered a plum or apple tree that has suddenly grown in his garden, which he did not plant himself. In fact, many fruit trees also tend to self-propagate either by self-seeding or by root sprouting. Especially the plum-like varieties such as plums, damsons, mirabelle plums and greengage tend to develop thorns or prickles.
Wild fruit trees can have spines
Thorny fruit tree is mostly wildling
Plums and many other types of fruit such as damsons, mirabelle plums or greengage descend from the so-called sloe plum, which can still sometimes be found in nature today. There are also other wild plum species that are often used as growing rootstock for grafting of cultivars. Now it can happen that these rootstocks sprout root shoots that suddenly look completely different from the grafted noble variety - and often have thorns. Felling the fruit tree or severe pruning can also cause the wild rootstock to suddenly sprout. This means: If plums, mirabelle plums or cherry plums with thorns suddenly grow in your garden, then these are wild forms.
Can you eat the wild fruit?
You can eat wild mirabelle plums and co. without worrying, although of course you have to be careful when harvesting them because of the thorns. However, it is not certain whether these varieties actually taste good. Some wild fruits are sweet, juicy and are in no way inferior to the noble varieties - except that they are usually much smaller. Others have a sour, floury taste, but are often suitable for preserving. Wild plums (often only with a lot of sugar!) can be used to make delicious jam, a delicious jelly or a fine liqueur. Other wild plums, on the other hand, are neither suitable for fresh consumption nor for preserving. You can only find out what specifically applies to your Wildling by trying it out.
What can you do with the thorny plant?
Once you find a thorny plant in your garden, your options are:
- They clear the plant and plant a noble variety instead.
- They let the wild variety grow and see if its fruits are edible.
You can also remove the thorny sprouts when they are young and thus prevent the rootstock from sprouting. On the other hand, if you let the wild tree grow, it will produce fewer and fewer thorns over the years.
tips
Spines and thorns are not synonyms, but are botanically completely different. However, both have evolved because the plant defends itself against predators.