Chapter 4.31
4.31 Canada Plum(Prunus nigra)
McKenna Munn, University of Guelph, Canada
Suggested citation for this chapter.
Munn,M. (2022) Fleshy Fruits. In The Student Encyclopedia of Canadian Indigenous Foods. Editor, M.N. Raizada, University of Guelph, Canada. http://www.firstnationsfoods.org/
Introduction
The Canada Plum is a species of plum native to Canada that has been gathered and used by Indigenous peoples for hundreds of years. The plums have plenty of nutritional benefits and is a very versatile fruit to bake, cook, can or eat with in the Indigenous community as well as for the rest of the country (Kuhnlein and Turner 1991). The future of this paper is to help educate Canadians of all ages about the Canada Plum, the history behind it and its current and future potential in the production industry.
Plant Description
The Canada plum, like most other plums, is grown from a parent tree. The Canada plum is the earliest to bloom among other American Plums (Arnold Arboretum 1917). The small, straggling deciduous tree has thin, broadly oval pointed leaves and produces an abundance of showy flowers, which become a faded pink over time, in the month of May, before turning to fruit (Kuhnlein and Turner 1991). After the flower’s blooming period is over, the fruit of the Canada plum tree begins to ripen in the later summer months, producing a scarlet, lustrously coloured skin encasing a semi-sweet and tart flesh with a central pit, similar to that of other plum species (Kuhnlein and Turner 1991). In its eastern geographical regions of the country, the Canada Plum can reach the measurements of a small tree as much as 30 ft. in height, but in the western regions, the tree is seen as more shrub-like (Cody and Shaw 1970). From the article Prunus nigra of the Arnold Arboretum of Harvard University, the author states "This tree is hardy but has a short life and in this part of the country is only worth growing as a curiosity”. Figure 1 shows a simple drawing of the many variables (i.e. Branches, flowers, leave, fruit, etc.) of the Canada Plum tree in different growing states, flowering, and fruit baring seasons. It also illustrates the type foliage the tree contains as well as how the fruit grow together and how to identify such compared to other plum tree species.
Historical Background
The historical background of plums is a global evolution. Varied species of plums evolved in Europe, Asia, and North America and were grown and cultivated domestically independent around the world (Afanador-Barajas et al 2022). Plums are native across a lot of the temperate area of the world, and in most areas early settlers selected superior attributes of their local species to designate as the plum to eat (Okie and Ramming 1999). Due to this selection process, we can assume that the same situation happened in regards of the Canada Plum and as to why it is not a more popular variety cultivated globally now with North America being the origin and home of the Canada Plum. Since the Canada plum does not produce the sweetest, most popular fruit compared to that of more favorable plum species we cultivate around the world, it was ideally and more popularly grown in home gardens, small orchards and in the wild.
Geographic Origins
As seen in figure 2, the Canada plum is a native species of the northern border of the United States and ranges to eastern Canadian Provinces as well as to parts of western Canada. The Canada plum is distinguished from the more southern Prunus americana by its larger and earlier flowers, the blunt teeth of the leaves and by the darker and coarser bark (Arnold Arboretum, 1917). The Canada Plum grows best in low shade to semi-direct sun lighting, open woods and forest edges near river valleys and on limestone hillsides (Kuhnlein and Turner 1991). The tree grows best in a sandy loam/well drained soil. The Canada Plum has been observed to propagate itself in the Cardston area (Alberta) in favorable years and the plum has produced a wild, and native population (Cody and Shaw 1970). Besides southern Alberta, the nearest known native locations consist of southeastern Manitoba, as well as in the coulees and thickets west through Saskatchewan and in North Dakota and Montana (Cody and Shaw 1970).
Associated Indigenous Peoples
Due to the geographic origin of the Canada plum, many Indigenous people’s groups gathered and used the fruit. The ripe fruit of the Canada plum tree were eaten fresh and preserved by Indigenous peoples throughout their range, including Iroquois, Huron, Ojibwa, Algonquin, Creek, Malecite, and Micmac (Kuhnlein and Turner 1991). Specifically, the Iroquois cut and pitted the dried plums, then added to boiling water to make a coffee substitute (Kuhnlein and Turner 1991). The fruit was not just used for consumption, but some groups used other variables of the plant itself for medicinal purposes. More in depth information of the different uses of the fruit and tree can be found under “Consumption and Uses.”
Consumption And Use
The ripe fruits were eaten fresh and/or preserved by a range of Indigenous peoples (Iroquois, Huron, Ojibwa, Algonquin, Creek, Malecite, and Micmac) (Kuhnlein and Turner 1991). The Iroquois peoples cut, pitted, and dried the plums, then added them to boiled water creating jellies, sauces and even coffee substitutes (Kuhnlein and Turner 1991). The plums can be also used in cakes and other sweet treats. Besides just using the fruit, Indigenous peoples used the inner bark of the trunk as a drink infusion and treatment for colds and to settle stomach bugs (Kuhnlein and Turner 1991). And like most fruits with pits, they contain Prussic acid, consumed in small amount is harmless but there have been cases of fatality in young children (Kuhnlein and Turner 1991). Today, the consumption of plums, in general, consists of the preparation of the dried fruit (prune), plum and prune juices, prune juice concentrates, canned prunes, plum paste, jams and jellies, and fresh-cut plums (Krasniqi 2006). Needless to say, plums have a huge potential for the fresh market and/or as a processing crop, yet we see a steady decline on the consumption of plums in Canada and around the world, more on this in Part Two Competition (Krasniqi 2006).
References
1.Kuhnlein, H. & Turner, J. (1991) Traditional Plant Foods of Canadian Indigenous Peoples. Gordon and Breach Publishers. 8. 159-160.
2.Arnold Arboretum of Harvard university (1917) Prunus nigra. Bulletin of Popular Information. 3:4. 14-14.
3.Cody, W.J. & Shaw, K. (1973) Canada Plum in Southwestern Alberta. Blue Jay. 31:4. 217-219. https://doi.org/10.29173/bluejay3799
4.Afanador-Barajas, L.A., Wilches, A.V., Macana, Y.A.M., Medina-Pérez, G. (2022) History, Distribution, Production and Taxonomic Classification of Plum. CRC Press. 1. 1-20.
5.Krasniqi, A. & Hui, Y.H. (2006) Handbook for fruit processing. Blackwell Publishing. 1. 557-560.