Black Doris plums have been affected by bad weather in Hawke's Bay. Photo: Webbs Fruit
If you've got a craving for plum crumble, a bit of preserved plum with your yogurt, or some easy home-made plum ice cream, you're out of luck.
Watties Hawke's Bay Black Doris plums have been noticeably missing from the shelves for a few months, and growing trends could mean the Kiwi classic is becoming a thing of the past.
Mike Russell grew plums, many for canning at Watties, for around 20 years before selling his orchard two years ago.
He thinks Black Doris is a fabulous plum which used to be high risk and high reward to grow. He is not so sure about the rewards any more though, especially after the terrible summer the region faced this year.
- Read some of RNZ's best plum recipes here
"I think Black Doris and Omega - the old standby varieties - are still the best" - Plum farmer Mike Russell
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