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Etymology
The fruit Prunus armeniaca gained its name from the beliefs of Pliny the Elder, a Roman historian and scientist of the 1st century, who maintained that the apricot was a kind of a plum, and had originally come from Armenia.6 Armenian sources support their claims by referring to a 6,000-year-old apricot pit found in an archaeological site near Yerevan.6 Other historians point that Mesopotamia as a clue to the Latin name. Apricots were cultivated in Mesopotamia, and it was known as armanu in the Akkadian language.
Cultivation and uses
Plum fruit is sweet and juicy and it can be eaten fresh or used in jam-making or other recipes. Plum juice can be fermented into plum wine; when distilled, this produces a brandy known in Eastern Europe as Slivovitz, Rakia, Tzuica or Palinka. Dried plums are known as prunes. Prunes are also sweet and juicy and contain several antioxidants.
Prune marketers in the United States have, in recent years, begun marketing their product as “dried plums”. This is due to “prune” having negative connotations connected with elderly people suffering from constipation.1
Various flavours of dried plum are available at Chinese grocers and specialty stores worldwide. They tend to be much drier than the standard prune. Cream, Ginsing, Spicy, and Salty are among the common variety flavours. Licorice is generally used to intensify the flavour of these plums and is used to make salty plum drinks and toppings for Shaved Ice or baobing.
Pickled plums are another type of preserve available in Asia and international specialty stores. The Japanese variety, called umeboshi, is often used for rice balls, called “Onigiri” or “Omusubi”. The ume, from which umeboshi are made, is however more closely related to the apricot than to the plum.
Prune kernel oil is made from the fleshy inner part of the pit of the plum.
Plums come in a wide variety of colours and sizes. Some are much firmer-fleshed than others and some have yellow, white, green or red flesh, with equally varying skin colour.
Plums and prunes are known for their laxative effect. This effect has been attributed to various compounds present in the fruits, such as dietary fiber, sorbitol,2 and isatin.3 Prunes and prune juice are often used to help regulate the functioning of the digestive system.
Species
The subgenus is divided into three sections:
Sect. Prunus (Old World plums). Leaves in bud rolled inwards; flowers 1-3 together; fruit smooth, often wax-bloomed.
P. cerasifera (cherry plum)
P. cocomilia
P. consociiflora"
P. domestica (species of most “plums” and “prunes” sold as such)
P. simonii
P. spinosa (blackthorn or sloe)
Sect. Prunocerasus (New World plums). Leaves in bud folded inwards; flowers 3-5 together; fruit smooth, often wax-bloomed.
P. alleghaniensis
P. americana
P. angustifolia
P. hortulana
P. maritima (beach plum)
P. mexicana
P. nigra
P. orthosepala
P. subcordata (Klamath, Oregon, or Sierra plum) Purple; fruit velvety. Treated as a distinct subgenus by some authors.
P. armeniaca (apricot)
P. brigantina
P. mume (ume)
P. sibirica
Plum cultivars in use today include:
Damson, or Damask Plum
Greengage (Firm, green flesh and skin even when ripe.)
Mirabelle (Dark yellow, predominantly grown in northeast France.)
Satsuma plum (Firm red flesh with a red skin.)
Yellowgage, or Golden plum (Similar to Greengage, but yellow.)