← Bedfellow

Canada Plum

Prunus nigra

Canada plum is a hardy northern plum bearing showy white-to-pink blossoms before the leaves and tart red plums good for preserves. A cold-tough small tree for hedgerows and wildlife plantings. The tart fruit, best after a frost, cooks into pies and preserves — but the pits contain enough cyanogenic compound that there are recorded cases of children dying after eating the fruit without removing the stone. Never eat the pit.

Family

Rosaceae

Type

tree

Lifespan

perennial

Height

9–9 ft

Spacing

15–25 ft apart

Light

part shade, shade

Soil moisture

moist

Soil pH

neutral, alkaline

Bloom

April, May, June

Bloom colors

white, pink

Wildlife value

pollinators, butterflies, mammals, songbirds, larval host

Caterpillar hosts

~456 butterfly & moth species

Landscape uses

specimen, hedge or screen, erosion control

Native states

CT, IA, IL, IN, MA, MI, MN, NC, NY, OH, VA, VT, WI, WV