Reine Claude Violette plum trees
Prunus domestica Reine Claude Violette is an old French variety, probably dating back to the 18th century. It has the characteristic sweet rich flavour which is so sought-after by plum enthusiasts.
English fruit enthusiast Robert Hogg, writing in the 1880s rates it as "A dessert plum of the greatest excellence, and particularly richly flavoured if allowed to hang on until it shrivels". It is sometimes known as Purple Gage in the UK - whereas most gages are green or yellow, this one has a dusky purple colour when fully ripe.
This is a late-season plum, ripening in the UK in late August - early September.
Reine Claude Violette plum trees for sale
Bare-root
BR11-year bare-root tree,VVA-1 rootstock£41.50
Medium tree
(2m-3m after 10 years)
BR21-year bare-root tree,St. Julien rootstock£38.75
Large tree
(3m-5m after 10 years)
Need help? Ask our fruit tree experts
Call us on 01759 392007 or fill in our contact form.
Tree specification
Photos of trees as supplied |
Tree sizes and forms
Pre-ordering
Pre-order now for delivery in September 2025
Delivery charges
Delivery for a single tree starts at £9.95, it is calculated based on your postcode.
Growing and Training
Reine Claude Violette is fairly easy to grow. It does best in warm dry climates, but is a bit less prone to fruit-splitting in spells of wet weather than some other plums and gages.
Although not well-known in the UK, this variety is still widely grown in France
History
Reine Claude Violette is part of the Reine Claude group of plums, known in the UK as gages. These plums have a characteristic sweet almost melon-like flavour and are usually smaller than regular English plums.
Reine Claude Violette characteristics
- Gardening skillExperienced
- Self-fertilityNot self-fertile
- Flowering group3
- Pollinating othersAverage
- Climate suitabilityTemperate climatesWarm climates
- Picking seasonLate
- CroppingHeavy
- Keeping (of fruit)1-3 days
- Food usesEating freshCulinary
- Disease resistanceAverage
- Country of originFrance
- Period of origin1750 - 1799
- Blossom colourWhite
- Fruit colourPurple - light
British-grown trees 
Unlike many garden centres and online retailers, the vast majority of our fruit trees are grown in the UK.
Find out more.
In addition, all our trees are certified under the Plant Healthy scheme, supervised by the Plant Health Alliance.
Other stakeholders include Defra and the RHS. The scheme aims to improve UK biosecurity by setting standards
for all growers and retailers involved in selling plants in the UK.
Find out more.
Guaranteed fruit trees
When you buy your fruit tree from Orange Pippin Fruit Trees we guarantee it for the first season in your garden while it gets established. If it doesn't grow successfully, we'll either replace it the following season or offer a refund, subject to some conditions.
Find out more.
More about plum trees
Eating plums, also known as dessert plums, offer some of the sweetest flavours possible in the temperate garden, rivaling the best of tropical fruits. We particularly rate Avalon, Oullins Gage, Cambridge Gage, Coe's Golden Drop, Old Green Gage, and Opal.
There are several things you can do, as the gardener, to enhance the flavours of these sweet fruits. Firstly, try to plant the tree in full sun - because it is sunlight that ripens the fruits and ensures the maximum sweetness. Secondly, thin the fruitlets in June. To be fair, thinning plum fruitlets is a tedious job, but it is well worth doing because most plum varieties set too many fruits, which leads to poorer fruit size and bland flavours. So if you think your tree has over-set, carefully prune off the developing fruitlets, and don't be surprised if you end up removing half of them or even more - the tree will reward you later on.
