Celebrate The Coming Of Spring At The Odawara Plum Festival!

Make Your Viewing More Fun! 5 Plum Varieties

There are up to 20 varieties of plum trees grown at Sogo Plum Grove. We will introduce five especially beautiful plum varieties.

1. Juro Plums

Juro Plums are the variety that is cultivated the most in Odawara for umeboshi (pickled plums).

During the Sengoku period in Japan, plums were cultivated in Odawara because they were grown around the castle as provisions for the soldiers. Umeboshi production was encouraged during that time.

2. Shira Kaga Plum Trees

In comparison to Juro plum trees, the strength of Shira Kaga plum trees lies in their large petals. Shira Kaga plums are used in umeshu (plum liqueur) and plum syrups.

3. Robai (Wintersweet)

Robai trees produce extremely adorable yellow flowers. Although the character for plums, ume, is attached to its name, it does not belong to the same family as plums category-wise. In English, they are known as wintersweet or Japanese allspice.

4. Kobai (Red Plum)

This is a variety that produces beautiful red-colored petals that will take your breath away when contrasted against the blue sky.

5. Shidare-ume (Weeping Plum)

Shidare-ume have a stunning impact when seen up close. You will feel as if you’ve been wrapped in a veil of plum blossoms.

Enjoy Food, Drinks, and Souvenirs!

There is a cafe inside this vast venue. Plum juice, umeshu, amazake (sweet sake), fresh juice, and more will quench your thirst as you stroll through this venue.

Eating delicious food while admiring the plum trees is another way of enjoying the Plum Festival. There might also be people that enjoy the festivities at the venues where these flowers bloom more than the plum blossoms themselves. A cafeteria is located inside the venue where you can taste cuisines made using the pulp from plums in udon noodles, ramen, oden, yakitori, and more.

Aside from the cafeteria, you can also eat freshly pounded mochi (rice cakes). Eating freshly made mochi as you enjoy the sight and fragrance of the plum trees is exceptional.

You can also purchase plum miso, plum jam, and other fruit jams handmade by farmers. They’re perfect as souvenirs.

Plum Blossoms That Indicate the Coming of Spring

The period when the flowers bloom will vary every year due to location and climate, but plum blossoms bloom the fastest out of all the trees that produce flowers in the spring.

Plums generally bloom around the end of January and will be at their best after February. If you come to Japan, then why not experience spring in Japan along with the beauty of the flowers?

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