Fruit Tree
Santa Rosa Plum
Prunus salicina 'Santa Rosa' · Rosaceae
Also called: Japanese Plum, Santa Rosa Japanese Plum
Santa Rosa Plum (Prunus salicina 'Santa Rosa') is a moderate-water fruit tree well suited to Tucson and the low desert. It thrives in full sun, with a fast growth rate. Expect white blooms February.
Santa Rosa Plum at a glance
- Water use
- Moderate (established)
- Sun
- Full sun (6+ hours) for best fruit set and flavor.
- Mature size
- About 15-20 ft tall and wide; usually pruned to 10-12 ft.
- Growth rate
- Fast
- Bloom
- White, Blooms February (early); fruit ripens early-to-midsummer, roughly June-July in the low desert.
- Cold hardiness
- Deciduous, cold-hardy in USDA 9a-9b. Early bloom can be frost-damaged in a cold snap.
- Soil
- Well-drained, fertile soil; amend caliche/clay and avoid waterlogging. Tolerates Tucson's alkaline soils with iron supplementation.
- Native range
- Garden cultivar; species Prunus salicina native to China. 'Santa Rosa' was introduced by Luther Burbank in California.
- Best used as
- Fresh eating, Jam/preserves, Edible landscape, Pollinizer for other Japanese plums
- Wildlife
- Fragrant early blossoms attract bees; fruit draws birds and javelina.
- Toxicity
- Pits, leaves, and bark contain cyanogenic compounds toxic to dogs, cats, and horses; flesh is edible. Keep pits from pets.
How to grow Santa Rosa Plum in Tucson & the low desert
Watering
Deep irrigation to ~3 ft: roughly weekly in summer, every 2-3 weeks in spring/fall, monthly in winter; more frequent the first two years. Keep evenly moist during spring fruit sizing to avoid drop and cracking.
Fertilizer & nutrients
Apply nitrogen (ammonium sulfate) after bloom/fruit set in spring, with a follow-up in early summer; stop by midsummer. Add iron/zinc chelate to correct chlorosis in alkaline Tucson soil.
Pruning & care
Prune in winter dormancy (Dec-Jan). Japanese plums fruit on spurs and one-year wood; thin out crowded shoots and head back vigorous growth to keep an open center and manageable height.
Notes
Good low-desert choice - needs only ~300 chill hours, within Tucson's typical range. Largely self-fruitful but yields are heavier with a second Japanese plum (e.g., 'Beauty', 'Burgundy') nearby; it is also an excellent pollinizer for other Japanese plums. Reddish-purple skin with sweet, juicy amber-to-red flesh. Thin fruit 4-6 in apart; whitewash trunk. Plant bare-root Dec-Feb.
Sources: University of Arizona Cooperative Extension - Deciduous Fruit and Nuts for the Low Desert (az1269): https://extension.arizona.edu/publication/deciduous-fruit-and-nuts-low-desert; Growing in the Garden - Arizona Fruit Planting Guide: https://growinginthegarden.com/arizona-fruit-planting-guide-a-visual-guide-for-low-desert-fruit/; Monrovia - Santa Rosa Plum: https://www.monrovia.com/santa-rosa-plum-05996.html