Combination of plum and apricot trees produces pluots

It is always interesting to come across a food I am not familiar with or read how new varieties of fruits and vegetables are described in the garden catalogs. I just came across the word “pluots,” which I was not quite familiar with. Also, the words apriums, apriplums, plumcots, and plucots! So I had to find out what they were. However, I will just describe one of them, as this is not a garden column.

For hundreds of years, people interested in horticulture have improved, deleted, or developed various this or that traits in plants throughout the world. For one area, this has been done for years with plum and apricot trees. Scientifically the fruits produced are called plumcots or apriplums. Luther Burbank named them plumcots. A plumcot tree can be reproduced asexually by budding. The apriplum develops by hybridized seedlings and cannot be reproduced. The Pluot was an improved version of the plumcot developed by Luther Burbank in the 1920s.

One hybrid-free stone fruit, the pluot, came from plum and apricot trees developed by Floyd Zaiger, owner of Zaiger Genetics in California, and was released to the public in the late 1980s. Zaiger has been called “the most prolific stone fruit breeder in the modern era.” He passed away in 2020. More than 20 varieties have been developed by Zaiger Genetics, and more are being developed.

It takes 12 to 15 years to develop each hybrid. There is no GMO involved nor are they genetically manipulated to include genes not normally present in a species. The pluot’s flavor depends on the variety of plum tree involved with the apricot, but the fruit is sweet and juicy. The speckled fruit looks like a smooth-skinned plum and comes in various shades of pinkish red, green, and purple. Their rounded sizes varies.

Pluot trees may be grown in zones 5 to 9 but need another pluot variety tree for pollination. The mature tree height is 15 to 20 feet tall. It takes 3 to 5 years for the trees to produce. The white flowers on plum and apricot trees are hand pollinated. The resulting fruits are called plucot (pronounced: “plew-ott”). The fruit is 75% plum and 25% apricot flavor. The name is also trademarked by Zaiger Genetics.

Some names of the fruits are: Dapper Dandy Pluot, Flavor King Pluot, Flavor Queen Pluot, Dinosaur Egg or Dinosaur Fruit, Emerald Beauty, Honey Punch plus many others. The fruit is popular in many areas of the United States and are becoming a majority of the plum market. If the fruit is not labeled as a pluot in the store, ask the produce manager. They are grown predominantly in California and Washington. The fruit can be substituted in many fruit recipes of desserts, salads, jellies, eating raw, etc. Do not refrigerate as it makes the fruit mealy.

I always find it exciting to find something different in the world of horticulture. The improvements through the years has improved many qualities and the nutrition of our foods. This has also led to diverse food preserving techniques so we do not eat seasonally any more.

Something to think about: “The joy of research is picking the fruits of discovery.” Steven Magee

PLUOT CHICKEN SALAD

3 cups diced cooked chicken

1 cup diced celery

1 cup diced pluot

1 cup pineapple tidbits,drained

1/2 cup sliced almonds, toasted

2 Tablespoons salad oil

2 Tablespoons pineapple juice

2 Tablespoons vinegar

1/2 teaspoon salt

Dash marjoram

1/2 cup mayonnaise or salad dressing

Combine the first 5 ingredients. Blend the salad oil, pineapple juice, vinegar and seasonings. Add to the chicken mixture. Chill one hour. Drain. Add the mayonnaise; toss.

Pluot Torte

4 cups diced unpared pluots

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup sifted all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 egg

1 Tablespoon melted butter or margarine

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/2 cup broken walnuts

Combine all ingredients. Mix thoroughly. Do not beat. Pour into a greased 8x8x2” pan. Bake in a hot oven (400 F.) 40 minutes or until pluots are done. Cool and cut into 6 or 8 squares or rectangles. Serve with whipped cream.

PLUOT SURPRISE PIE

2 cups peeled and chopped pluot

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup chopped walnuts

2 eggs

1 cup sugar

1 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 cup margarine, melted

1/4 cup shortening, melted

Grease a 10” pie plate. Spread the fruit over the bottom of the plate. Sprinkle with 1/2 cup sugar and the nuts.

Beat the eggs well. Add 1 cup sugar and thoroughly mix. Add the flour and melted butter and shortening to the egg-sugar mixture. Beat well. Pour the batter over the top of the fruit.

Bake in a slow oven ( 325 F.) for 60 minutes or until the crust is brown. Cut like pie. Serve either warm or cold with vanilla ice cream.

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