Dean Tunbridge with the first of the harvest

English plum growers have started picking what is set to be an excellent, high-quality crop, in stark contrast to the 2008 haul.

The cold 2008-09 winter gave orchards the necessary number chill factor to induce beneficial dormancy in the trees. This was followed by perfect conditions for both blossom and fruit set.

As a result, some orchards have been hand-thinned to ensure fruit reaches the preferred commercial sizes, which has the added benefit of removing the heavy weight of immature fruit that threatened to damage the trees.

Dean Tunbridge, commercial director of top-fruit and stonefruit marketing desk Norman Collett Ltd, has already been filling early variety programmes with all of his major supermarket customers.

He said: “Our growers began harvesting Opals, Reeves, Avalon and Jubilee from mid-July. Quality and size so far have been excellent, with high brix levels, which means the fruit really tastes like summer plums and is able to compete with European imports.”

The stage is now set for the industry’s most popular variety, Victoria. Tunbridge reports that the first supplies will be available from around August 10, with a steady build-up meaning the bulk of Norman Collett’s growers’ crops will be harvested over the following two to three weeks, with the bulk safely over the graders between August 15-18.

“Victorias represent the main variety,” said Tunbridge. “Our retail customers recognise its importance as a special seasonal fruit which is traditionally very close to consumers’ hearts.”

As the plum season progresses, Victoria will be joined by Marjorie Seedling, another traditional late English variety, with picking due to commence over a fortnight from August 25.

Fruit is then held in store, extending the season for consumers through until the end of September. Collett’s technical director Nigel Jenner has conducted extensive research into storage regimes and treatments suitable for stonefruit in partnership with Mark Tully of SmartFresh, and is confident of a programme that offers extended quality and shelf life at this critical point in the season.