FNPS Plant Database

Prunus geniculata

scrub plum
  • Photo by: Shirley Denton, Suncoast Chapter FNPS

Nomenclature

Common Name:

scrub plum

Synonym(s):

Genus species:

Prunus geniculata

Family:

Rosaceae

Plant Specifics

Form:

tree

Size:

4-12 ft tall by 4-6 ft wide

Life Span:

Long-lived perennial

Flower Color:

white

Fruit Color:

red

Phenology:

Deciduous. Blooms in late winter. Clonal.

Noted For:

Showy Flowers, Showy Fruits

Landscaping

Recommended Uses:

Specimen plant in a dry setting or grow as part of a scrub garden. This plant has very interesting zigzag branches which provide considerable winter interest.

Considerations:

Slow growing.

Availability:

Native Nurseries, FNPS Plant Sales, Seed

Propagation:

Seed. Division (naturally clonal).

Light:

Full Sun, Part Sun

Moisture Tolerance:

Always Flooded---------------------------------Extremely Dry

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Short very dry periods -to- Very long very dry periods

Salt Water Flooding Tolerance:

Unknown

Salt Spray/Salty Soil Tolerance:

Low/no tolerance of salty wind or direct salt spray

Soil or Other Substrate:

Sand

Soil pH:

Acidic

Suitable to Grow In:

9A,9B

USDA zones are based on the average annual extreme minimum winter temperature.

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Vouchered In:

Distribution
Vouchered
Not vouchered
Selected
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No county distribution is available for this plant yet.
Starting…
Map coded by Melissa Fernandez-de Cespedes (Paynes Prairie Chapter)

Ecology

Wildlife:

Pollinators, Birds

Pollinated by bees.

Birds eat the fruit and are the primary dispersers.  

Native Habitats:

Scrub, scrubby high pine.

Natural Range in Florida:

Comments:

Ethnobotany:

Fruit is said to be bitter.

General Comments:

This is an endangered species. Please acquire only from reputable nurseries.



Endemic to the central ridges, esp. the Lake Wales Ridge.

FNPS Plant Print

Citations:

Chafin, L. G. (2000). Field Guide to the Rare Plants of Florida. Florida Natural Areas Inventory, Tallahassee, FL.


Deyrup, Mark, Jay Edirisinghe, and Beth Norden. (2002). The diversity and floral hosts of bees at the Archbold Biological Station, Florida (Hymenoptera: Apoidea). Insecta Mundi, 544. ( https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/insectamundi/544/ ). Accessed 2026. University of Nebraska, Lincoln, NE.


Haehle, Robert G. and Joan Brookwell. (1999). Native Florida Plants. Gulf Publishing Company. Houston, TX.


Huegel, Craig N. (2010). Native Plant Landscaping for Florida Wildlife. University Press of Florida, Gainesville.


Wunderlin, R. P., B. F. Hansen, A. R. Franck, and F. B. Essig. (1999+). Atlas of Florida Plants. ( https://florida.plantatlas.usf.edu/ ). [S. M. Landry and K. N. Campbell (application development), USF Water Institute.] Institute for Systematic Botany, University of South Florida, Tampa.

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