Damsons - a query.

[basketcase]

damson gin! and damson jam are lovely.

There are a lot of wild damson trees nearby , I;m still eating 2007s damson jam I made so much (the gin has gone though!)

I was thinking 'Damson Gin' too!

BTW - I beleive there's a Damson Festival somewhere in the Lake District or thereabouts. My sister-in-law went a couple of years ago, but it's annual I think. There they demonstrate everything you could possibly wish to use Damsons for - and possibly one or two things you wouldn't!

[Flummery]

Just picked and bagged up 21 lb from our tree. I think there are almost as many again! Going to be busy I reckon.

[wollyanna]

Interesting reading about the damsons I have a tree but must be sterile no luck at all.I have recently seen growing along some quite major roads some multicoloured plums obviously not Victorias but yellowy red. There are masses on the road and it seems such a waste.keep trying to find some in less busy area so i can get busy making jam.

[Alison]

It's well nigh impossible to remove the stones before cooking. I have a friend who just sticks them in a pie as they are and they all spit out the stones! I couldn't be having with that. It's slow and messy but I let the cooked fruit cool and go through it a spoonful at a time removing the stones by hand. THEN I add the sugar and proceed. If you were making a damson jelly (haven't tried that yet but if it's another big-yielding year I intend to have a go) then of course, the stones would strain out with everything else.

I love damsons, they always remind me of my nan's as she always used to have a big haul of them every year. She made jams and pies mainly and I always loved counting the stones out onto the sides of the pudding dishes (she had the old rimmed sort) to see how many I'd had and my granddad teaching me tinker, taylor, soldier, sailor as I counted . Might get a tree some time as I think you can train them as a fan but swapped some blackberries for a load last year and cooked them up and had them with yoghurt for lunch. Have a promise of some this year but they're earmarked for damson gin as I've never tried it and even if I don't like it my brother and sister in law would love some for Christms.........

[FB.]

wollyanna

Your tree is sterile?

Does it flower? - bear in mind that they sometimes flower only every second season (biennial).

Do the flowers get damaged by frost?

Is the tree in an exposed/windy position that deters the pollinating insects?

Perhaps your tree needs a pollination partner? An easy option would be to graft a few small branches (from another unrelated tree) onto yours, to provide pollen.

[wollyanna]

I never seem to see any blossom when I think I see buds beginning to form they seem to disappear possibly the birds. I've other fruit trees apples and pears and these seem fine.

[andrew1973]

Im rapidly becoming a convert of damsons after 'finding' two trees on a friends land. For an easy Gin recipe try :
Damson Gin with Orange recipe - Waitrose.com