American Plum (Prunus americana)

Size: 8′ to 20′ tall/ 10-15′ spread.

Flowering: early-mid May

Fruiting: September

Birds: warblers attracted to pollenating insects. Fruit eaten by larger birds such as robins, orioles, blackbirds, or some woodpeckers

One of my personal favorites for the insect attracting flowers in the spring, and the edible fruits (for me) in the fall. American Plum is a multi-stemmed, shrubby, small tree with a spreading crown reaching up to 30 feet tall with numerous rigid spiny branches. Readily suckers from roots. American plum is a great native plant for wildlife because it bears small tasty plums in the fall. The native plum has a fast growth rate, and is also good for wind breaks. the flowers are White, long filaments, and appear in small clusters in early spring with the leaves. The fruit is a fleshy drupe, nearly round, 1 inch across, reddish-purple to yellow-brown some glaucous bloom, ripen in mid to late summer.