Name that Fruit Tree!

[Lisa_St.Albans]

My husband says it is a wild damson but it doesn't match a single description I have found. The green fruits turn orange/red but never purple/black. They have a thin skin, juicy, fleshy fruit and a small stone in the middle ... answers on a postcard please.

They are rather scrummy. We still have a load in the freezer from last summer. I'd really like to identify them so I can google about for receipie/storage ideas. Judging by the amount of fruit on there already, if I don't find a good use for them soon we are going to have move

[Lisa_St.Albans]

Actually, whilst I am on the subject ... the tree next to it is covered in berries that look like blueberries or something. Any clues on correct identification of this one too please?

[ina]

Greengages? How large are they? (Difficult to say from the photo without something to get a scale to beside it.)

[Odsox]

That sounds and looks like a Cherry Plum.
They have smallish fruit that ripens to a deep yellow with orange blush and usually grow wild in hedgerows.

Certainly good to eat but not the most flavoursome of the plum family, make very nice jam though.

The second one looks like a sloe.

[Lisa_St.Albans]

Scale! Good point

It is a large tree and the green fruits turn orange/red when ripe. (Never deep yellow though Odsox ...) They have also have stone in the middle. Any the wiser?

2nd One = Sloe? Ooooh will look that up! Thanks

[ina]

Yeah, too small for greengages. Mirabelle plum is another possible, I think.

[Odsox]

If the tree has thorns it could be a Bullace, but all the Bullace fruit that I've seen only ripen to a pale yellow.

[Millymollymandy]

My greengages are smaller than that at the moment but they ripen to greeny yellow, never orange. Mirabelles are round and small and yellow. I'd say you have a variety of orange plum - they do exist! I don't think it matters desperately what variety the plum is for recipes; I'd imagine any eating plum would work. I have a purple one which I don't have a clue what it is, only that it tastes very nice!

[Lisa_St.Albans]

So the vote is for plum (some kind of) but definately not Wild Damson! Can't wait to tell Mr N

[frozenthunderbolt]

IF the second is a sloe, you have the potential to make the best gin liquer ever, even better than damson and that's saying something!

[snapdragon]

If the tree has thorns it could be a Bullace, but all the Bullace fruit that I've seen only ripen to a pale yellow.

Sorry to butt in - I was just going to post a similar question (no pics) - I thought my tree was a blackthorn (found as a seedling in a hacked hedgerow, long thorns, beautiful black bark, hard wood, and flowers at blackthorn-winter time) but the fruit is now dropping !! and they are pale yellow and appear ripe but smaller than your fruit Lisa_St-A
Loads of fruit this year, could it be a Bullace? How is that pronounced ? I've never heard of it before, can I use it the same as Damsons? With small amounts of fruit previously I've left them for the birds but maybe we can share this year.
sorry about the multi questions

[Millymollymandy]

Just googled bullace because I didn't know what they were but their fruit ripens in the autumn.

http://www.brickfieldspark.org/data/bullace.htm

[jampot]

first one is deffo a type of cherry plum we have severeal of the trees round the edge of our garden and each year the trees aregroaning under their weight
i get to make dozens of jars of jam and crumbles
tasty but not as nice as cultivated plums

[Peggy Sue]

There is a row of what have been called wild plums along the farm where I keep my horse, with one greengage at the end. They are groaning under the weight this year. The fruit are definitiely smaller than green gage and there are a variety of ripening colours from golden yellow, to orangy/blush through to deep purple. Most are about an inch in diameter some trees have fruit really as small as cherries.

I've made jam, crumble, plum brandy , plum cake and eaten them all day at work as a snack. The horses munch at them too looking well happy.
They are ready a bit before the greengages. Definitely a different flavour ro damson I think.

[jampot]

oooh peggy sue how did you make the plum brandy?