Often called the “Golden Plum,” the Nancy Mirabelle is one of those fruit trees that just loves to grow. If you give it a little TLC, you’ll be rewarded with a massive harvest of large, sweet, golden-yellow plums every summer. The secret to getting that bumper crop, though? It’s all in the pruning.
How to Care for Your Nancy Mirabelle
For the most part, Mirabelle trees are pretty low-maintenance. But if there’s one thing they can’t live without, it’s a regular trim. The Nancy variety is famous for its heavy yields and incredibly aromatic fruit. Because it’s such a fast grower, pruning is essential to keep the tree healthy and the fruit quality high. Unlike some other varieties, the Nancy Mirabelle needs a good thinning out early on in its life to clear out the “clutter” in the canopy and keep the branches from getting overloaded.
When Is the Best Time to Prune?
Like most plums, the Nancy Mirabelle blooms from April to May. The ideal time for a major prune is just before those blossoms appear. However, because the Nancy is such a vigorous grower, you’ll also want to give it a secondary trim after the harvest in August or September. This is what we call maintenance pruning. The goal here is to thin out the crown so light and air can reach the center. You should also keep an eye out for “water sprouts”—those vertical shoots that shoot straight up. Feel free to snip those off whenever you see them, as they just suck energy away from the rest of the tree.
How to Prune Your Nancy Mirabelle
- First, scout out any dead or diseased wood and carefully prune it away.
- Next, remove any branches that are growing inward toward the trunk or crossing over each other.
- Snip off all those vertical water sprouts.
- Don’t forget the base! Cut back any “suckers” (shoots growing out of the roots or the lower trunk) right back to the source.
