Native Plants
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Ask Mr. Smarty Plants
Ask Mr. Smarty Plants is a free service provided by the staff and volunteers at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center.
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Tuesday - December 18, 2012
From: Conroe, TX
Region: Southwest
Topic: Edible Plants, Poisonous Plants, Trees
Title: Wild plums for jelly from Conroe TX
Answered by: Barbara Medford
QUESTION:
Do wild plum trees grow in my area? I want to get some next summer to make plum jelly.ANSWER:
The Prunus mexicana (Mexican plum) definitely grows in Montgomery County, according to this USDA Plant Profle Map. We don't know how old a tree has to be to bear fruit, but they grow to 15' to 35' tall, and begin bearing fruit fairly young. These are probably not going to show up in your supermarket, but a local Farmer's Market might be a good possibility.
We do want to caution that every part of a member of the prunus species, except the flesh of the fruit, is poisonous. So, careful about disposing of twigs, leaves, etc. that you might gather in picking the fruit, and be sure to remove the seed before you begin to process the fruit.
Follow this plant link, Prunus mexicana (Mexican plum), to our webpage on the plant to learn more about it, including blooming and fruiting times.
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