Plum
Prunus domestica
European plums (often prune types) vs Japanese (P. salicina) vs native plums are different species. Prunes are dried European plums — a process.
GROW → HARVEST → EAT → DRY → POWDER → CAPSULE → GUMMY — forms are not equivalent. Food first.
Identity
What it is
European plums (often prune types) vs Japanese (P. salicina) vs native plums are different species. Prunes are dried European plums — a process.
Edible portions
- fruit
Absence of a portion from this list means it is not treated as food here — not that every other part is toxic.
Growing
- Climate. 4–9 depending on species
- Light. Full sun
- Soil. Well-drained
- Planting. Pollenizer for many Japanese types.
- Harvest. When they yield and smell like plum; European types may hang longer.
Processing, drying, storage
- Drying. Prunes: dry whole until leathery. See also Make → Drying.
Preparation and culinary uses
- Fresh, jam, dry into prunes
Nutrition and compounds
- Vitamins (qualitative, well-known associations). vitamin C, vitamin K — not milligram values.
AAA interpretation Food first. These associations explain why a plant shows up in a nutrient conversation — they are not a supplement shopping list.
Next steps
Sources
- USDA PLANTS Database — taxonomy and range (verify current entries)
- USDA FoodData Central — nutrient profiles for foods (verify current entries; this page does not invent milligrams)
- State cooperative extension growing guides — verify for your region
Honest incompleteness is preferred to fabricated completeness. If a section is missing, no record for it is attached here — not a claim that the plant lacks that characteristic, and not that it was omitted as a secret.
Internal quality class A. Strong page: distinctive plant facts plus practical growing or kitchen use.