Meritare plum trees
Prunus domestica Meritare is an attractive new early-season plum from Sweden, and can be considered an improved version of the popular Opal plum - which is one of its parents. It has a similar or better flavour, and the fruit-size is much larger.
It is also a good choice if you are looking for an early-season plum to grow in colder climates.
Meritare plum trees for sale
Bare-root
BR11-year bare-root tree Wavit rootstock £24.45
Large tree
(3m-4m after 10 years)
How to grow
Meritare is reasonably disease-resistant, and cold-hardy in all UK situations.
Meritare is considered too light-cropping by many commercial growers, but for the gardener this is a good thing - lighter crops often mean better flavour, and larger fruit size.
It is a good pollinator for many other plums, damsons and mirabelles, including Mirabelle de Nancy, Avalon, Belle de Louvain, Victoria, Cambridge Gage, Farleigh and Shropshire Prune.
Advice on fruit tree pollination.
History
Meritare was developed in the 1980s at the Balsgaard research station in southern Sweden. It is a cross between an American dessert plum called Ontario, and the well-known Opal plum from Sweden. (Some authorities state incorrectly that it was developed at the INRA research station in Bordeaux, France).
Meritare characteristics
- Gardening skillAverage
- Self-fertilityNot self-fertile
- Flowering group3
- Pollinating othersAverage
- Climate suitabilityTemperate climatesMild damp climates
- Picking seasonEarly
- CroppingLight
- Keeping (of fruit)1-3 days
- Food usesEating fresh
- Flavour style (apples)Sweeter
- Country of originFrance
- Period of origin1950 - 1999
- Fruit colourRed
Similar varieties
Prunus domesticaOpalOpal is an early plum variety with a good flavour, self-fertile and very easy to grow.
