Beach Plum & Other Fruit

Beach plum (Prunus maritima) is a conspicuous native shrub of coastal plant communities in the northeastern United States because of its prolific bloom in the spring, prized fruit in the autumn, and perseverance in a seemingly hostile environment. The plums are rarely eaten raw, but their tartness gives jam and jelly a distinctive taste. Jelly production from wild beach plum fruit persists as a cultural tradition in coastal communities from Maine to North Carolina. The shrub is also used for dune stabilization, landscape and other
conservation programs.

Rick has been familiar with beach plum since his childhood on Cape Cod, Massachusetts. He started studying beach plum in 1997 at Cornell University, developing this species as a commercial crop. He conducted research on beach plum’s propagation and cultivation, as well as fruit quality selection. Seaberry Farm currently has a three-acre beach plum orchard.

Location

Seaberry Farm
2770 Wright Rd.
Federalsburg, MD

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