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     Plums, peaches, apricots, cherries, and almonds are all members of the large Prunus L. genus, which is in the rose family.  There are lots of myth and history about the various species.  The first to be discussed are the old world eatable species then the New World species  especially those found in Alabama, and finally a mention of ornamental cherries. As far as I know all of the native species and many of the others have white flower, thus it is easy to spot a peach growing wild due to its pink flowers. 

     Early references include Aaron’s rod, which in Numbers 17 bore almonds, Prunus dulcis (Mill.) D.A. Webb, and the golden apples of Proverbs 25:11 that were likely apricots, P. armeniaca L, since there is essentially no evidence that apples, Malus Mill., were domesticated thus essentially still like crabapples at that time much less having a golden variety.  The same goes for the other Biblical references to apples none of which include the Garden of Eden.  

     Peaches, P. persica (L.) Batsch, are virtually indistinguishable from almonds except for the fruit, and peaches were introduced by the Spanish and propagated by the Indians, which is the source of the Indian peach variety.  If these are pickled they can almost be mistaken for beets, Beta L., except for having a pit.  Peaches without fuzz are nectarines, P. persica (L.) Batsch var. nucipersica (Suckow) C.K. Schneid., are just peaches without fuzz.  The remaining three Old World species known for their fruit are European plum, P. domestica L., that is used for prunes or dried plums if you prefer, sour cherry, P. cerasus L., that is used in pies, and sweet cherry, P. avium (L.) L., that is eaten fresh.

     Most of the fresh plums come from cultivars and/or hybrids of the native species.  Chickasaw plum, P. angustifolia Marsh., is one of only a couple of native trees cultivated in North America before being discovered by Columbus; the other is yaupon holly, Ilex vomitora Aiton.  William Bartram was probably the first to make botanical collections and descriptions of both, but the American Revolution was among the reasons for delays in publication that kept him from getting credit for the discovery and giving specific epithets that match the common name.  Chickasaw plums used to be common along the roadsides, but are now hard to find due to individuals regrettably removing them, or more often the highway department spraying herbicide while peach borers may have played a role in the population decline.  Hortulan plum, P. hortulana L.H. Bailey, is a New World species that was not described until found growing in an European garden.  Similarly wild goose plum, P. munsoniana W. Wight & Hedrick, was only known from a tree grown after a pit was found in the crop of a goose long before the natural range was discovered.  A third notable native edible plum not found in Alabama is beach plum, P. maritima Marsh., considering that it is found along the immediate Atlantic Coast from Virginia to Maine.  American plum, P. americana Marsh., is a late ripening plum that has wonderfully scented fruit even when essentially rotten, which is usually the case when I have seen them other than green, therefore I have not confirmed that the flavor is on par with the aroma.

     Black cherry, P. serotina Ehrh., is the largest size native tree in the genus thus it is used for specialty lumber as well as wild cherry flavoring, and the Alabama state champion is 71 feet tall, 140 inches in circumference, and has an average limb spread of 79 feet.  Alabama cherry, P. alabamensis C. Mohr, has been synonymously ranked as both a subspecies and variety of black cherry.  From what I have seen flatwoods plum or hog plum, P. umbellate Elliot, is also similar to black cherry except for missing the fuzz along the midvein of mature leaves and perhaps a more spreading growth habit (unless I was given a misidentification for what was an Alabama cherry instead).  Both the common name flatwoods plum and specific epithet seem to be misnomers (assuming the identification to be correct) because I have only seen is growing in mountainous uplands and the inflorescence is a raceme (although this tends to contradict the identification).

     One of the more important native species in the nursery trade is Carolina cherry-laurel, P. caroliniana Aiton, because it is evergreen, but it often gets larger than expected and can be messy due to both the fruits and the many birds that are attracted to the fruits.  The fruits of Carolina cherry-laurel are not eatable due to having higher amounts of cyanogenic glycosides than other species where these compounds are usually found in the Prunus L. pits, which should not be eaten with an exception of almond where the concentrations are minimal but are possibly partially responsible for the characteristic almond aroma.  The Alabama state champion Carolina laurel cherry is 37 feet tall, has a girth of 14 inches, and an average limb spread of 44 feet.

     Some northern species are pin cherry, P. pensylvanica L.f., Allegheny plum, P. alleghaniensis Porter, and chokecherry, P. virginiana L., which is not to be confused with chokeberry, Aronia Medikus nom. con