Prunus domestica 'Malling Elizabeth' (D)

RHS Plant Profile
plum 'Malling Elizabeth'

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Fruit Edible Trees

A large, red-purple plum with juicy yellow-orange flesh, similar in appearance to the popular cultivar ‘Victoria’. Self-fertile and in pollination group 2, a heavy cropper, which bears dual purpose fruits in mid-July

Position

Full sun

Soil Types

Clay, Loam, Sand

Max Height

2.5-4 metres

Max Spread

2.5-4 metres

Size

Time to Maturity
5–10 years
Max Spread
2.5-4 metres
Max Height
2.5-4 metres

Growing Conditions

Clay Loam Sand
Moisture
Moist but well–drained or Well–drained
pH
Neutral

Position

Full sun
Aspect
South–facing or West–facing
Exposure
Sheltered
Hardiness

Hardiness Ratings

All ratings refer to the UK growing conditions unless otherwise stated. Minimum temperature ranges (in degrees C) are shown in brackets

  • H1A: under glass all year (>15C)
  • H1B: can be grown outside in the summer (10 - 15)
  • H1C: can be grown outside in the summer (5 - 10)
  • H2: tolerant of low temperatures, but not surviving being frozen (1 to 5)
  • H3: hardy in coastal and relatively mild parts of the UK (-5 to 1)
  • H4: hardy through most of the UK (-10 to -5)
  • H5: hardy in most places throughout the UK even in severe winters (-15 to -10)
  • H6: hardy in all of UK and northern Europe (-20 to -15)
  • H7: hardy in the severest European continental climates (< -20)
H5

Colour & Scent

Season Stem Flower Foliage Fruit
Spring
Summer
Autumn
Winter

Botanical Details

Family
Rosaceae
Native to GB/Ireland
No
Foliage
Deciduous
Habit
Spreading branched
Genus
Prunus can be deciduous or evergreen trees or shrubs with showy flowers in spring, and often good autumn foliage colour. Some have edible fruit in autumn, and a few species have ornamental bark
Name Status
Unresolved
Horticultural Group

Horticultural Classification Codes

Horticultural Classification Codes are often given to genera which have a large number of species or cultivars. They are used to categorise cultivated plants based on specific, shared characteristics such as shape, colour, size or flowering time, and can be displayed as letters or numbers

For example:
Dahlia ‘Sunset Kate (Sin) = Single flower
Rosa ‘Marigold’ (HT) = Hybrid Tea

Dessert cherries are sweet and juicy and are best eaten picked fresh and raw

How to Grow

Cultivation

Tolerant of a range of well-drained soils but prefers clay loam in a sunny, sheltered site. Suitable for all training forms. Keep a weed-free area of at least 60cm radius around trunk. Thin fruits if necessary. Irrigate in dry periods. Flowers early, so at risk from spring frosts. See how to grow: plums for further advice

Propagation

Propagate by chip budding or grafting onto a clonal rootstock for fruit. The rootstock largely determine the vigour of the tree

Suggested planting locations and garden types

  • City and courtyard gardens
  • Cottage and informal garden
  • Wildlife gardens
  • Edible fruit
  • Wall side borders

Pruning

Regular pruning required according to tree form - pruning plums, pruning established fans

Pests

May be susceptible to aphids, caterpillars, fruit tree red spider mite, brown scale, plum moth and bullfinches

Diseases

May be susceptible to peach leaf curl, silver leaf, bacterial canker, blossom wilt and honey fungus