Beach Plum
Prunus maritima
Beach plum is the salt- and sand-tolerant shrub of Atlantic dunes, blanketed in white bloom then heavy with purple plums famous for jam. Among the toughest natives for seaside gardens. As with every plum and cherry, the flesh is the food: the pits, leaves and twigs are cyanogenic and are not.
- Family
- Rosaceae
- Type
- shrub
- Lifespan
- perennial
- Height
- 12–12 ft
- Spacing
- 4–8 ft apart
- Light
- sun
- Soil moisture
- dry
- Soil pH
- acidic, neutral, alkaline
- Bloom
- April, May, June
- Bloom colors
- white
- Wildlife value
- pollinators, songbirds, butterflies, larval host
- Caterpillar hosts
- ~456 butterfly & moth species
- Landscape uses
- specimen, hedge or screen
- Native states
- CT, DE, MA, MD, ME, NH, NJ, NY, PA, RI, VA
Related native plants
More Prunus species
- Black Cherry (Prunus serotina)
- Chokecherry (Prunus virginiana)
- Carolina Laurelcherry (Prunus caroliniana)
- Hollyleaf Cherry (Prunus ilicifolia)
- American Plum (Prunus americana)
- Mexican Plum (Prunus mexicana)