Plum: Difference between revisions

{{hatnote|"Plumtree" redirects here. For the Canadian band, see [[Plumtree (band)]]. For other uses, see [[Plumtree (disambiguation)]].}}

A '''plum''' is a [[fruit]] of some species in [[Prunus subg. Prunus|''Prunus'' subg. ''Prunus'']]''.'' Dried plums are most often called [[prune]]s, though in the United States they may be just labeled as 'dried plums', especially during the 21st century.<ref>{{Cite web |title=What is the Difference Between Prunes and Dried Plums? |url=http://www.delightedcooking.com/what-is-the-difference-between-prunes-and-dried-plums.htm |access-date=2023-04-01 |website=Delighted Cooking |language=en-US}}</ref><ref name="oxford">{{cite web|url=https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/prune|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160925134919/https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/prune|url-status=dead|archive-date=September 25, 2016|title=Prune|publisher=Oxford Dictionaries, Oxford University Press|date=2018|access-date=1 March 2018}}</ref>

Plums mayare likely to have been one of the first fruits domesticated by humans, with origins in [[Eastern Europe|East European]] and [[Caucasus Mountains|Caucasian mountains]] and [[China]]. They were brought to [[Great Britain|Britain]] from Asia, and their cultivation has been documented in [[Andalusia]], southern [[Spain]]. Plums are a diverse group of species, with trees reaching a height of {{convert|5|-|6 meters|m}} when pruned. The fruit is a [[drupe]], with a firm and juicy flesh.

Plums mayare likely to have been one of the first fruits domesticated by humans.<ref>{{cite book|title=Horticultural Reviews (Volume 23)|editor=Jules Janick|year=1998|isbn=978-0471254454|publisher=Wiley}}</ref> Three of the most abundantly cultivated species are not found in the wild, only around human settlements: ''[[Prunus domestica]]'' has been traced to East European and Caucasian mountains, while ''[[Prunus salicina]]'' and ''[[Prunus simonii]]'' originated in China. Plum remains have been found in [[Neolithic]] age archaeological sites along with olives, grapes and figs.<ref>{{cite web|title=The origins of fruits, fruit growing and fruit breeding|author=Jules Janick|publisher=Purdue University|year=2005|url=http://www.hort.purdue.edu/NEWCROP/pdfs/origins-fruit-growing-breeding.pdf|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130521204917/http://www.hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/pdfs/origins-fruit-growing-breeding.pdf|archive-date=2013-05-21}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|title=Chemical analyses of organic residues in archaeological pottery from Arbon Bleiche|author=Spangenberg|journal=Journal of Archaeological Science|volume=33|issue=1|date= January 2006|pages=1–13|doi=10.1016/j.jas.2005.05.013|display-authors=etal}}</ref> According to [[Ken Albala]], plums originated in [[Iran]].<ref>{{Cite book|last=Albala|first=Ken|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NTo6c_PJWRgC&q=lavash+originated+iran&pg=PA240|title=Food Cultures of the World Encyclopedia|date=2011|publisher=ABC-CLIO|isbn=978-0-313-37626-9|language=en|page=240}}</ref> They were brought to Britain from Asia.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Lyle|first=Katie Letcher|url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/560560606|title=The Complete Guide to Edible Wild Plants, Mushrooms, Fruits, and Nuts: How to Find, Identify, and Cook Them|publisher=[[FalconGuides]]|year=2010|isbn=978-1-59921-887-8|edition=2nd|location=Guilford, CN|pages=107|oclc=560560606|orig-year=2004}}</ref>

The name plum derived from [[Old English]] ''{{lang|ang|plume''}} "plum, plum tree", borrowed from [[Germanic language|Germanic]] or [[Middle Dutch]], derived from [[Latin]] ''{{lang|la|prūnum}}''<ref>{{L&S|prunum|prūnum|ref}}</ref> and ultimately from [[Ancient Greek]] {{lang|grc|προῦμνον}} ''{{lang|grc-latn|proumnon''}},<ref>{{LSJ|prou{{=}}mnon|προῦμνον|ref}}.</ref> itself believed to be a loanword from an unknown language of [[Asia Minor]].<ref name=oxford/><ref name="eol">{{OEtymD|plum}}</ref> In the late 18th century, the word ''plum'' was used to indicate "something desirablesweet or agreeable", probably in reference to tasty fruit pieces in [[dessert]]s, as in the word sugar-plum.<ref name=eol/>

Japanese or Chinese plums are large and juicy with a long shelf life and therefore dominate the fresh fruit market. They are usually clingstone and not suitable for making prunes.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Plums|url=https://magazine.wsu.edu/2017/08/07/plums/|access-date=2021-02-20|website=Washington State Magazine|language=en-US|last1=Clark|first1=Larry}}</ref> They are cultivars of ''[[Prunus salicina]]'' or its hybrids. The cultivars developed in the US are mostly hybrids of [[Prunus salicina|''P. salicina'']] with [[Prunus simonii|''P. simonii'']] and [[Prunus cerasifera|''P. cerasifera'']]. Although these cultivars are often called Japanese plums, two of the three parents (''P. salicina'' and ''P. simonii'') originated from China and one (''P. cerasifera'') from Eurasia.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Boonprakob|first1=U.|last2=Byrne|first2=D.H.|date=2003|title=Species composition of Japanese plum founding clones as revealed by RAPD markers|url=https://doi.org/10.17660/ActaHortic.2003.622.51|journal=Acta Horticulturae|issue=622|pages=473–476|doi=10.17660/actahortic.2003.622.51|issn=0567-7572}}</ref>

If the weather is too dry, the plums will not develop past a certain stage, but will fall from the tree while still tiny, green buds, and if it is unseasonably wet or if the plums are not harvested as soon as they are ripe, the fruit may develop a fungal condition called [[Monilinia fructicola|brown rot]]. Brown rot is not toxic, and some affected areas can be cut out of the fruit, but unless the rot is caught immediately, the fruit will no longer be edible. Plum is used as a food plant by the [[larva]]e of some [[Lepidoptera]], including [[November moth]], [[willow beauty]] and [[short-cloaked moth]].{{Citation<ref>Skinner needed|date=February(1984), 2021}}Chinery (2007), and see references in Savela (2002)</ref>

The taste of the plum fruit ranges from sweet to tart; the skin itself may be particularly tart. It is juicy and can be eaten fresh or used in [[jam]]-making or other recipes. Plum juice can be fermented into [[plum wine]]. In central England, a cider-like alcoholic beverage known as [[plum jerkum]] is made from plums. Dried, salted plums are used as a snack, sometimes known as ''[[saladitos|saladito]]'' or ''salao''. Various flavors of dried plum are available at Chinese grocers and specialty stores worldwide. They tend to be much drier than the standard prune. Cream, [[ginseng]], spicy, and salty are among the common varieties. [[Licorice]] is generally used to intensify the flavor of these plums and is used to make salty plum drinks and toppings for [[slush (beverage)|shaved ice]] or ''[[Chhoah-peng|baobing]]''. Pickled plums are another type of preserve available in Asia and international specialty stores. The Japanese variety, called ''[[umeboshi]]'', is often used for rice balls, called ''onigiri'' or ''omusubi''. The ''[[ume]]'', from which ''umeboshi'' are made, is more closely related, however, to the [[apricot]] than to the plum.