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Scientific name: Prunus domestica

Common names: Plum tree and prune plum tree

Prunus domestica can be identified in its flowering stage by small five-petal flowers that can be oink or white in color. When not flowering or bearing plums, the tree has large (2-5 inch) waxy ridged green leaves.

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Prunus domestica is a vascular, flowering, and seed-bearing plant. It blooms small white or pink flowers, then produces fruit (plums) with seeds used to reproduce.

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Prunus domestica in its primary growth stage

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The dominant stage of Prunus domestica is diploid sporophyte. The secondary stage is haploid gametophyte.

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Adult plum tree after its secondary growth stage

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Prunus domestica does not reach maturity until it is about 2-3 years old. They usually live 10-15 years, but some have lived for over 40 in the right conditions. They need supports for the first six months to year of their life to prevent harsh bending, but are self-sufficient afterwards.

The plum tree in front of the band room on campus looks to be about five years old.

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Prunus domestica sexually reproduces through its seeds. Each plum fruit has one seed inside. It can naturally reproduce when the fruit falls to the ground and releases its seeds, but because of breeding that makes the fruits larger, the seeds can struggle to naturally take to the soil, often requiring human intervention to plant the seeds.

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Prunus domestica do not flower or produce fruit until they are 2-3 years old. They flower during mid-to-late spring. After that, they only produce fruit every two years in a process called biennial bearing. The specific tree on campus has no flowers or fruit, but is in its "green cluster" phase, meaning the clusters that will become flowers are beginning to form.

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Prunus domestica uses cross-pollination to produce its fruit. The flowers attract pollinators, mostly honeybees, to carry the pollen from tree to tree. They can also artificially pollenated using small brushes and taking pollen from one tree to another.

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Prunus domestica has feeder and sinker roots. The feeder roots grow horizontally and can reach in length up to 1.5x the tree's height. The sinker roots grow downward to stabilize the tree, but they do not extend more than six feet deep. This means most of the root system is near the top of the ground.

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Prunus domestica is native to North America and Europe. The trees are not considered invasive to Alabama. They are most often found in man-made areas like gardens but they can naturally grow in prairies and woodlands.