Plum Blossom Necklace in 925 Silver

The plum blossom, symbol of perseverance and courage

With its delicate pink petals, the humble plum blossom can easily be mistaken for its cousin, the cherry blossom that blooms in spring. But the plum blossoms bloom in the middle of winter. In the midst of frost and snow, its bright and hardy flowers are an exciting sight, symbolizing perseverance and courage in the face of adversity.

In art, plum blossoms are often depicted alongside their winter friends, pine and bamboo, to represent the values of determination, honesty and modesty. Mostly, these flowers symbolize the hope and promise that spring is, really, just around the corner.

In Chinese culture, flowers are models of beauty and morality, integrity and courage, purity and hope; radiant in all their forms, they enrich ancient Chinese society both inside and out.

Although the plant is native to China, it has been cultivated since ancient times in Korea, Japan and Vietnam. The plant is cultivated for its fruits, and for its flowers.

Another species often identified as "Japanese plum" is the Sumomo .

In Japan, cultivated Ume plants are divided into yabai (literally, "wild Ume"), hibai ("red Ume"), and bungo ("from Bungo Province"). Bungo plants are mainly grown for fruit, and are supposed to be the result of a hybridization between Ume and apricot. Hibai plants have red heartwood and most also have red flowers. Because of their robustness, yabai (wild) plants are often used as rootstocks.

The plant has one of the earliest flowering periods in Japan (January or February); the flowers are small but the flowering is abundant and quite showy; it occurs, as mentioned, before foliation (like almost all the other fruit trees of the rosaceae).

In Italy, flowering is very early, precedes or is contemporary to the almond tree (Prunus dulcis) and therefore can be subject to damage or insufficient pollination in cold climates or with late frosts, as happens for other early flowering Sino-Japanese plums.

The fruits ripen in early summer, usually (in Japan) in June.

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