Prunus americana, also called Wild Plum, easily grows in average, dry to medium, well-draining soils in full sun to part shade. Remove suckers to prevent unwanted spread. Fairly adaptable. American plum is a small, deciduous, single trunk tree or multi-stemmed shrub which occurs in rocky or sandy soils in woodlands, pastures, abandoned farms, streams and hedgerows. As a tree, it typically grows to 15-25′ tall with a broad, spreading crown. As a shrub, it suckers freely and can form large colonies. 2-5 flowered clusters (umbels) of 5-petaled white flowers (1″ diameter) appear in March before the foliage.

Flowers are unpleasantly aromatic. Flowers are followed by edible, round, red plums (1″ diameter) with bright yellow pulp which ripen in early summer. This species is usually grown for ornamental value and not for fruit production, however. Although the plums can be eaten raw, the quality is somewhat poor and are perhaps better used for preserves and jellies. Toothed, oblong to ovate leaves are 3-4″ long and turn yellow to red in autumn. Branches and twigs are an attractive dark reddish-brown and sometimes have thorny lateral branchlets. Host plant for various butterfly species including Coral Hairstreak and various moth species including American Dagger Moth.