Prunus sp
Plum
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Description
Slender trees which lose their leaves. The leaves are toothed around the edge and hairy underneath. Leaves in the bud are rolled. Flowers are white. The fruit is a one seeded round fleshy fruit.
Edible Uses
The fruit is eaten raw or cooked.
Traditional Uses
The fruit are eaten raw or cooked.
This uses section is brief — help expand it
Known Hazards
Many species are cyanogenic; that is, they contain compounds called cyanogenic glucosides, notably amygdalin, which, on hydrolysis, yield hydrogen cyanide. Although the fruits of some may be edible by humans and livestock (in addition to the ubiquitous fructivory of birds), seeds, leaves and other parts may be toxic, some highly so. The plants contain no more than trace amounts of hydrogen cyanide, but on decomposition after crushing and exposure to air or on digestion, poisonous amounts may be generated. The trace amounts may give a characteristic taste ("bitter almond") with increasing bitterness in larger quantities, less tolerable to people than to birds, which habitually feed on specific fruits.
Distribution
Suitable only for high altitude areas in the tropics. (Japanese plums need less cold weather than European plums to start off flower formation). The soil needs to be well drained. Trees need plenty of sunlight. Trees can stand frost except at flowering. In PNG it is recorded between 1,600-2,600 m above sea level.
Where It Grows
Asia, Pacific, Papua New Guinea, PNG, Philippines, SE Asia,
Cultivation
Plums are often grown from seed. They can be budded or grafted. many kinds of plums have to be pollinated from other trees.
Other Information
A few trees are established and fruit in the highland areas of Papua New Guinea.
Notes
There are about 200 Prunus species.
References (2)
- Bourke, R. M., Altitudinal limits of 230 economic crop species in Papua New Guinea. Terra australis 32.
- French, B.R., 1986, Food Plants of Papua New Guinea, A Compendium. Asia Pacific Science Foundation p 264
