Which varieties have spines?

Thorny fruit trees are mostly wild

Plums as well as many plum-like fruits such as plums, mirabelle plums or Renekloden come from the so-called Schlehenplum, which still sometimes grows in nature today is to find. There are also other wild plum species that are often used as vigorous rootstocks Refining used for 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. Also a felling of the fruit tree or a strong one Cut back can cause the wild rootstock to suddenly sprout. This means: If plums, mirabelle plums or cherry plums with thorns suddenly grow in your garden, then they are wild forms.

Can you eat the wild fruit?

You can eat wild mirabelle plums and Co. without worry, although you have to be careful when harvesting 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. You can make delicious jam, a delicious jelly or a fine liqueur from wild plums (often with a lot of sugar!). Other wild plums, on the other hand, are neither suitable for fresh consumption nor for preserving. You can only find out what exactly applies to your wildling by trying it out.

What can you do with the thorny plant?

When you have found a thorny plant in your garden, these options are left to you:

• You clear the crop and plant a noble variety instead.
• You let the wild variety grow and see whether its fruits are edible.

You can also remove the thorny shoots as young shoots 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.