Early summer, reddish purple skin, yellow flesh.
Oullins × Early Favorite. Alnarp, Sweden, 1948. Good quality, reddish-purple, medium-sized, round, semi-freestone. Firm yellow flesh. One of the first European plums to fruit in the season.
Wisconsin plum breeder Brian Smith noted that Opal is the hardiest European plum available. Bob Purvis reported it to be hardy to about –33˚. Some years ago we sent 25 trees up to Alaska. Kevin Irvin, then vice president of the Alaska Pioneer Fruit Growers Association, arranged the order and later reported that the “plum is hardy in Anchorage, AK, and ripens dependably every year.”
Medium-sized vigorous tree. Excellent cropper. Partially self-fertile but yields best when paired with another European plum. Zone 3.
Maine Grown.