Plum (European)
Can I Grow Stanley?
Stanley is the classic prune plum — freestone, blue-skinned, and perfect for drying, canning, or fresh eating. It's the standard European plum for home orchards.
Growing Requirements
Chill Hours
800
Hardiness Zones
5-6-7-8
Harvest
September
Results
Enter your zip code to see if Stanley will thrive in your area.
You checked if it'll grow. Now make sure you remember what happens when it does.
Pruning dates, harvests, spray schedules, what worked. The gardeners who get the most from their trees are the ones who kept records.
Start your free tree logFree for up to 30 plants. No card needed.
About Stanley
Stanley is the classic prune plum — freestone, blue-skinned, and perfect for drying, canning, or fresh eating. It's the standard European plum for home orchards.
Stanley requires 800 chill hours — the number of hours between 32°F and 45°F during winter dormancy. Without enough chill, the tree may fail to flower properly or produce poor fruit.
⚠️ Common Challenges
Susceptible to black knot fungus (prune out infected branches immediately); needs thinning.
❌ Common Misconception
Can I grow Stanley in Zone 9 or warmer?
No. While Stanley is listed for zones 5-8, it requires 800 chill hours to produce fruit. Warm zones like 9+ typically receive only 200-400 chill hours. The tree may survive but will not fruit reliably. Consider low-chill alternatives like Anna apple (200h) or Tropic Snow peach (200h) instead.
If you plant it, write it down.
Variety, rootstock, planting date — and every pruning and harvest after that. Future you will thank you.
Free for up to 30 plants. No card needed.
Chill hour data from Open-Meteo Historical Weather API. Variety information compiled from university extension services.