Considerable variation in tolerance to root zone flooding exists within the genus Prunus. Research demonstrated the differences in defoliation and survival for 11 Prunus taxa (2) as shown in Table 1.

The two taxa most tolerant of root zone flooding, 'F-12/1' mazzard cherry and 'Newport' plum illustrate the potential for enhancing adaptability of less flood tolerant Prunus such as Japanese apricot (Prunus mume) and Yoshino cherry (P. yedoensis) on poorly drained sites if they are grafted onto appropriate rootstocks. P. avium 'F-12/1, resistant to bacterial canker, is listed as compatible with Sargent's, 'Yoshino,' 'Okame,' 'Autumnalis' and 'Kwanzan' cherries from the table as well as other Higan cherries (P. subhirtella), P. serrulata, P. X schmittii and P. X hillieri (1).

Demand for winter flowering Japanese apricots cultivars has outstripped supply in the southeastern U.S., partly due to difficulties in producing own-root transplants via rooted cuttings. The potential for Japanese apricot to be grafted onto 'Newport' plum or other myrobalan plums and hybrids is suggested by these research results. 'Newport' is a complex hybrid which includes a heritage of P. salicinia, P. americana, P. nigra and P. cerasifera. However, cultivar specific incompatibility problems may exist. The Japanese apricot cultivar 'Kobai' is reported to be compatible but the cultivar 'White Fast' is not compatible with P. cerasifera (Keith Warren, personal communication).

Literature cited:

1. Macdonald, B. 1986. Practical Woody Plant Propagation for Nursery Growers. Timber Press, Portland, OR.
2. Ranney, T. G. 1994. Differential tolerance of eleven Prunus taxa to root zone flooding. J. Environ. Hort. 12(3):138-141.
   Table 1. Survival and defoliation of 11 Prunus taxa for plants subjected to incremental flooding over seven weeks.

   Taxon	Survival	Defoliation %
   Carolina cherrylaurel	0 a	82 c
   'Canada Red' chokecherry	43 b	100 d
   'Peggy Clark' Japanese apricot	50 b	95 cd
   Japanese bushcherry	50 b	52 b
   Sargent cherry	60 b	29 a
   Yoshino cherry	60 b	87 cd
   'Okame' cherry	70 bc	80 c
   'Autumnalis' Higan cherry	70 bc	52 b
   'Kwanzan' Japanese cherry	90 cd	58 b
   'F-12/1' mazzard cherry	100 d	27 a
   'Newport' plum	100 d	15 a

   Values are means of 7-10 plants. Means followed by the same letter within a column are not significantly differend P = 0.05. Survival was 100% for all non-flooded controls and defoliation was less than 7% for all non-flooded controls.

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