# One more plant question. Is this going to be edible fruit? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [June 13, 2014, 4:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-more-plant-question-is-this-going-to-be-edible-fruit/690684 "2014-06-13T04:13:02Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 19\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Renee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/renee/32/287_2.png) [@Renee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Renee)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2014, 4:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-more-plant-question-is-this-going-to-be-edible-fruit/690684/1 "2014-06-13T04:13:02Z")
We have some shrub/tree things, which are [currently growing fruits of some sort.](https://fbcdn-sphotos-f-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-xpf1/t1.0-9/10390068_717912068252076_6468440489531751289_n.jpg) We bought this property a few months ago, and have been excitedly watching everything bloom and whatnot this year. We even have a cherry tree! So exciting. Anyway, those green fruit, which are about 3/4 of an inch long: are they something edible? (Mid Missouri area.) ---
**Author:** ![araminty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b5e925/32.png) [@araminty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/araminty)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2014, 5:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-more-plant-question-is-this-going-to-be-edible-fruit/690684/2 "2014-06-13T05:20:09Z")
Certainly could be a _Prunus_ - the fruit and leaf shape makes me think more of the European plum varieties usually dried as prunes, but no reason not to eat them fresh, if indeed I’m right. (I might not be!) Can you cut a fruit open and see what the inside is like? I hope you’re fertilizing your fruit trees, producing a crop takes a lot out of a plant. ---
**Author:** ![Anaglyph](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ed8c4c/32.png) [@Anaglyph](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaglyph)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2014, 6:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-more-plant-question-is-this-going-to-be-edible-fruit/690684/3 "2014-06-13T06:05:00Z")
Yes, this definitely looks like some variety of plum - but at this stage of ripeness its difficult to tell which. There are many, many varieties, some with edible fruits, others quite tart or rough tasting. You’ll find out more once the fruit ripen to show their mature colour. It might be american wild plum ([see this video for comparison](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ENCP0AR9Dd4)) ---
**Author:** ![foolsguinea](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foolsguinea/32/14751_2.png) [@foolsguinea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/foolsguinea)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2014, 10:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-more-plant-question-is-this-going-to-be-edible-fruit/690684/4 "2014-06-13T10:05:17Z")
Might be something you could make jam from. ---
**Author:** ![Renee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/renee/32/287_2.png) [@Renee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Renee)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2014, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-more-plant-question-is-this-going-to-be-edible-fruit/690684/5 "2014-06-13T17:26:49Z")
> [@araminty](#): > > Certainly could be a _Prunus_ - the fruit and leaf shape makes me think more of the European plum varieties usually dried as prunes, but no reason not to eat them fresh, if indeed I’m right. (I might not be!) Can you cut a fruit open and see what the inside is like? > > I hope you’re fertilizing your fruit trees, producing a crop takes a lot out of a plant. I didn’t know we had fruit trees until last week. 🙂 The ones I just showed a pic of are wild, on the edge of a wooded area, and unless those are really fantastic plums I imagine I’ll just let it be. But I’d like to fertilize the cherry tree, what do you recommend? I’ll dissect a plum (?) and report back. ---
**Author:** ![araminty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b5e925/32.png) [@araminty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/araminty)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2014, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-more-plant-question-is-this-going-to-be-edible-fruit/690684/6 "2014-06-13T20:07:23Z")
Just any broad-spectrum fertilizer with micronutrients - that’s elements like boron, iron and copper. You only really need to fertilize completely once or twice a year, then cheaper 1-1-1 NPK is fine the rest of the time. Be careful not to fertilize too early in the growing season, or your plants may have new growth when the first frosts hit. And it’s no use fertilizing after the plants have dropped their leaves and are dormant. It’s really a question of common sense! Your local ag extension service can give targeted advice customized to local conditions. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2014, 8:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-more-plant-question-is-this-going-to-be-edible-fruit/690684/7 "2014-06-14T08:32:03Z")
The plums look similar to [Myrobalan](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cherry_plum) (cherry-plum) - although given your location, they are most likely a different (but similar) species. Smallish wild plums of this type may be quite sweet to taste when very ripe - and they will almost certainly make excellent jam. My approach (for cherry plums in the UK) is to wait until the fruit is falling off the tree, then go and pick a large quantity. Take them home and rinse them, then drain and dry them and spread them out in shallow layers on trays. Over the course of a few days, they will ripen to the point of translucent softness (a few will spoil - so pick these out and discard them). Once they are ripe and soft, they can be cut in half and the stones should come out easily - then I just put the halved fruit in a big pan with the same weight of white sugar and simmer it, then boil it until it reaches setting point. The result is a sticky, slightly tart jam that rivals apricot in flavour. Even if it comes out too sour to spread on toast, it makes an excellent base for sticky BBQ coatings for ribs etc. I also use them to [make my own prunes](http://www.atomicshrimp.com/st/content/cherry_plums) most years - which I later use in making Christmas Pudding. ---
**Author:** ![foolsguinea](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foolsguinea/32/14751_2.png) [@foolsguinea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/foolsguinea)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2014, 7:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-more-plant-question-is-this-going-to-be-edible-fruit/690684/8 "2014-06-14T19:23:35Z")
What Mangetout describes sounds very much like a plum…shrub? that grows in my neighborhood (southern Mo.) I don’t remember when the fruit ripen (it’s not my tree) but they’re sort of Bing-cherry color and a little big bigger than a large cherry. ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2014, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-more-plant-question-is-this-going-to-be-edible-fruit/690684/9 "2014-06-14T19:53:30Z")
I grow cherry-plums. The fruit is almost perfectly spherical, unlike the one’s it the OP’s photo. I am curious to know what it turns out to be. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2014, 8:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-more-plant-question-is-this-going-to-be-edible-fruit/690684/10 "2014-06-14T20:28:34Z")
> [@beowulff](#): > > I grow cherry-plums. > The fruit is almost perfectly spherical, unlike the one’s it the OP’s photo. They’re not spherical while they are developing - only when fully grown and ripening. I walk past a big stand of cherry plums every day and I’ve been watching them since blossom time - the green fruits on the trees now are very similar to the OP’s photo. (although I don’t actually think the OP’s specimen is Prunus cerasifera - just something quite similar) ---
**Author:** ![ZenBeam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/3ab097/32.png) [@ZenBeam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZenBeam)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2014, 9:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-more-plant-question-is-this-going-to-be-edible-fruit/690684/11 "2014-06-14T21:13:02Z")
> [@Renee](#): > > We even have a cherry tree! We have a semi-dwarf cherry tree, and have to put netting over it as soon as the cherries start to turn pink, or else the Robins will pick at all the cherries. Obviously, if it’s a full-size tree, that’s not practical. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2014, 9:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-more-plant-question-is-this-going-to-be-edible-fruit/690684/12 "2014-06-16T21:23:12Z")
For comparison - here’s a photo of one of the Cherry Plum trees I’ve been picking from for the last dozen years or so (fruits are immature as this is mid June): [http://1drv.ms/1lK6EGq](http://1drv.ms/1lK6EGq) Obviously not the exact same species as the OP - but clearly, not all that different either. ---
**Author:** ![Renee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/renee/32/287_2.png) [@Renee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Renee)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2014, 10:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-more-plant-question-is-this-going-to-be-edible-fruit/690684/13 "2014-06-16T22:08:56Z")
> [@Mangetout](#): > > For comparison - here’s a photo of one of the Cherry Plum trees I’ve been picking from for the last dozen years or so (fruits are immature as this is mid June): > [http://1drv.ms/1lK6EGq](http://1drv.ms/1lK6EGq) > > Obviously not the exact same species as the OP - but clearly, not all that different either. Cool, that does look very similar. I’ll try to remember to post back once they’re ripe, let you know how they turn out. Yesterday we found a pair of apple trees on the property, too! Loving it here. ---
**Author:** ![Peanuthead](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peanuthead/32/360_2.png) [@Peanuthead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peanuthead)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2014, 1:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-more-plant-question-is-this-going-to-be-edible-fruit/690684/14 "2014-06-17T01:15:29Z")
Olives? ---
**Author:** ![foolsguinea](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foolsguinea/32/14751_2.png) [@foolsguinea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/foolsguinea)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2014, 2:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-more-plant-question-is-this-going-to-be-edible-fruit/690684/15 "2014-06-17T02:53:33Z")
Renee, those leaves look a lot like peach leaves to me. I have heard of peach orchards in central Missouri along the Missouri River, though given the latitude, I think they must be a different strain from the famous Georgia peaches. Maybe that’s what you have? ---
**Author:** ![Renee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/renee/32/287_2.png) [@Renee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Renee)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2014, 4:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-more-plant-question-is-this-going-to-be-edible-fruit/690684/16 "2014-06-17T04:53:25Z")
Oh, I wish! I think the fruits are too small though, shouldn’t they be bigger by now? They’re about cherry-sized. ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2014, 5:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-more-plant-question-is-this-going-to-be-edible-fruit/690684/17 "2014-06-17T05:03:43Z")
Peaches are fuzzy. ---
**Author:** ![araminty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b5e925/32.png) [@araminty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/araminty)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2014, 11:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-more-plant-question-is-this-going-to-be-edible-fruit/690684/18 "2014-06-17T23:12:59Z")
> [@Peanuthead](#): > > Olives? [No](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/84/Olivesfromjordan.jpg/220px-Olivesfromjordan.jpg). Not peaches, either - as noted, they’d be fuzzy. I like **Mangetout** ’s jam or chutney idea, even if they’re not much good for eating fresh. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2014, 11:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-more-plant-question-is-this-going-to-be-edible-fruit/690684/19 "2014-06-17T23:49:45Z")
And if they were peaches, the leaves would be longer, narrower, and supple; not the broad, serrated-edged blades in the OP’s pic.