Prunus alleghaniensis

Prunus alleghaniensis, the Allegheny plum,^[2] is a species of New World plum, native to the Appalachian Mountains.

Prunus alleghaniensis
1913 illustration[1]
Conservation status
Apparently Secure  (NatureServe)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Clade:	Angiosperms
Clade:	Eudicots
Clade:	Rosids
Order:	Rosales
Family:	Rosaceae
Genus:	Prunus
Subgenus:	Prunus subg. Prunus
Section:	Prunus sect. Prunocerasus
Species:	P. alleghaniensis
Binomial name
Prunus alleghaniensis Porter

Description

Prunus alleghaniensis is a shrub or small tree 0.91–3.66 meters (3–12 feet) tall. The leaves are 5 to 9 centimeters (2 to 3+1⁄2 inches) long, the tip is usually long and pointed. The leaf margins are finely toothed. The twigs sometimes have thorns. The bark is fissured in older specimens. The flowers are plentiful and white, eventually turning pink. The dark reddish purple fruit is 13 millimeters (1⁄2 in) wide, with a whitish bloom.^[3]

Distribution and habitat

The species is native to the Appalachian Mountains from New York to Kentucky and North Carolina, plus the Lower Peninsula of Michigan. There are old reports of it growing also in New Jersey and Connecticut, but it now appears to have been extirpated in those two states.^[4][5][6][7] It is typically found in elevations between 370 and 610 m (1,200 and 2,000 ft).

It is not common in moist woodlands.^{[citation needed]}

Uses

The fruit is made into preserves and jelly.^[8]