Wild Plum Seedling Bundle

The American plum is a small, deciduous single or multi-stemmed shrub. It is fast-growing and short-lived, typically from 15 to 30 years. Tiny pinkish-white flowers are abundant in the spring and have an unpleasant odor. Plums with a pink to red outer skin form in the late spring. Leaves are simple in an alternate arrangement with serrate margins. They are oval or elongate in shape, roughly 2" to 4" long, and are a dark green color in the summer turning into yellow-orange fall color. Bark on younger shrub trees is dark-brown. Thorny lateral branches may also form. Older barker tends to peel and lenticels present. 

American plum prefers well-drained moist soils but can also tolerate alkaline, acidic, and clay soils. It can also tolerate dry sites, salt spray, poor drainage, wet sites, and drought. It is typically found growing along roadsides, fields, and fence rows. American plums are also seen as aggressive and high maintenance due to their excessive sucker growth and the ability to grow in thickets.