What is a beach plum?

Plum or prunus maritima is a deciduous shrub in the plum family. It is originally from North America, where it is growing along the Atlantic coast. Sand dunes are a natural habitat of beach plums and prosperous plants are sometimes visible half -buried in the sand. These plants grow along the coast from Maine to Maryland. Plam on the beach is considered to be endangered in Maine, where it loses the habitat due to intensive commercial coastal development. Usually they spread through underground suction cups, but sometimes the roots of the tap, depending on the type of soil. Plama on the beach is commonly used to stabilize seaside sand dunes and control of erosion due to their deep spread of root systems. Although they are originally from the coast, these plants can also be well known when they cultivate in the interior in well -drained soil. It grows in thickets 3 to 7 feet (1 to 2 meters) high, but can grow as high as 17 feet (5 meters) high in cultivation in the garden. Oval leaves are 1 to 3 inches(3 to 7 centimeters) long and ¾ to 1.5 inches (2 to 4) centimeters wide and appear after flowers bloom. Plum leaves alternate along the branches that can bend under the weight of clusters of fruit that resemble large grapes. Its leaves are live green on top and have a light green underside.

Beach plum produces attractive flowers that grow in clusters in the spring. Its flowers have five petals that are white to pollination when they develop a pink shade. The flowers have long, protruding sticks with large yellow anthers on their tips. Plums ripen at the end of summer and attract birds. These plums are stone fruits that can be replaced in recipes for other stone fruits, such as jet and domesticated plums.

Mature fruit on the beach is round and a diameter of approximately ½ to ¾ inch (1 to 2 centimeters). Before it ripens, plum is heavy with red color anda bitter taste. Mature plum is purple or blue and is commonly used to produce heart, wines, jelly, jams and pastries. In the northeast, a chatting industry was developed that sells this tasty fruit. The stain on colonial days for use in jams and jelly has become a popular fare in the Atlantic seaside spa, restaurants and resorts.