Oak Summit Nursery
Dura Cherry Plum
Dura Cherry Plum
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Dura Cherry Plum is a Sapa seedling introduced by the Morden Experimental Station in 1942. The low spreading shrub produces heavy annual crops of fruit about 1⅜ inches across, with dull green skin blotched purple and red flesh.
The fruit ripens in late August, can hang into October, and is well suited to canning and other processing. Dura needs a compatible cherry plum or Japanese plum for pollination.
Compare the cherry plum cultivars growing at Oak Summit Nursery.
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Growing details
- Hardiness
- Zone 2
- Fruit
- Fruit about 1⅜ in across, with dull green skin blotched purple and red fleshWell suited to canning and other processing
- Habit
- A low, spreading shrubHeavy crops every year
- Site and soil
- Full sun and soil that drains wellAvoid low spots where frost settles
Ripening
Late August
The fruit can hang on into October
More about this plant
From Morden
Dura is a seedling of Sapa, introduced by the Morden Experimental Station in Manitoba in 1942.
Cold hardinessZone 2 · Canadian maps for this plant
Zone 2 and warmer
The map shows minimum winter hardiness. Soil, moisture and summer warmth also affect how a plant grows.
About these maps
Climate: Natural Resources Canada, 1991–2020. Provincial distribution: VASCAN via retained botanical research. Province outlines: Natural Earth, public domain.
Open Government Licence – CanadaPollination
Dura needs pollen from another cherry plum. Sapa has given a good result. Manor did poorly as a pollen source for Dura. Western sandcherry and American wild plum may also supply pollen, though neither is a sure thing.
The cherry plums we list are sold out right now. Ask us about another cherry plum.
How the cherry plums compare
The cherry plums we grow, side by side.
| Variety | Introduced | Parentage | Fruit | Size | Flavour and use |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Compass | 1896. H. Knudson, Minnesota | Sandcherry crossed with a native plum. Accounts differ on which | Dark purple red skin, yellowish flesh | About 1 in | Jelly and canning |
| Sapa | 1908. Niels Hansen, South Dakota Experiment Station | Sandcherry × Sultan Japanese plum | Purple skin with a blue bloom, dark purple flesh | Small, about 1 in | Sweet and tart. Jam and canning |
| Opata | 1908. South Dakota Experiment Station | Sandcherry × Gold Japanese plum | Dark purplish red skin with a blue bloom, green flesh | About 1⅜ in | Sweet with a lively acid note. Preserves |
| Sapalta | 1941. Introduced from Brooks, Alberta | Open pollinated seedling of Sapa | Reddish purple skin, deep purple flesh | Small to medium | Sweet and tart. Fresh, canning and jam |
| Convoy | 1941. Released by Boughen Nurseries, Manitoba | Western sandcherry × Japanese plum | Red skin, yellow flesh | About ¾ to 1¼ in | Sweet and juicy. Fresh, preserves, baking and canning |
| Dura | 1942. Morden Experimental Station, Manitoba | Seedling of Sapa | Dull green skin blotched with purple, red flesh | About 1⅜ in | Canning |
| Manor | 1945. Morden Experimental Station, Manitoba | Seedling of Sapa | Dark purple skin, purplish red flesh | Small, 1 to 1¼ in | Fresh, jam and canning |
| Kappa | 1960. Cecil Patterson, University of Saskatchewan | Sandcherry × Japanese plum | Dark bluish black skin. Sources disagree on the flesh colour | Small | Sweet and fruity. Fresh, jam and canning |
| New Oka | Not recorded | Western sandcherry × Japanese plum | Dark bluish black skin, wine red flesh | About 1.2 in | Highly flavoured. Fresh and preserves |
Years, parentage and introducers are as the nursery has long listed them, and have not all been checked against breeders' records.
Accounts of Compass differ, and its skin colour remains uncertain.
New Oka's colour and size are as Prairie growers describe this group of cherry plums.
Convoy's size is one retailer's figure.