wild goose plum Prunus hortulana Kingdom: Plantae FEATURES Division/Phylum: Magnoliophyta Wild goose plum is a small tree that may attain a Class: Magnoliopsida height of 20 feet and a trunk diameter of eight Order: Rosales inches. Its gray or brown bark becomes scaly at maturity. Twigs are slender, red-brown and smooth. Family: Rosaceae The ovoid, red-brown buds are about one-fourth ILLINOIS STATUS inch in length. Leaves are arranged alternately along the stem. These simple, oblong to oval leaves may common, native be as much as six inches long and two inches wide. Each leaf is finely-toothed along the edges. Each tooth has a gland at its tip. The leaf is green and smooth on the upper surface and pale and sometimes hairy on the lower surface. Flowers develop in clusters, up to one inch wide. The five- petaled, white flowers appear after the leaves are partly grown. The fruit is a drupe (a seed enclosed in a hard, dry material that in turn is covered with a fleshy material). The drupe is nearly spherical and up to one inch in diameter. This red, fleshy fruit is hard, bitter and contains one seed. BEHAVIORS © Guy Sternberg Wild goose plum may be found in the southern one- half of Illinois. It grows in wood edges and thickets. tree in flower Flowers are produced from March through April. The wood is hard and brown. ILLINOIS RANGE © Guy Sternberg flowering branches © Illinois Department of Natural Resources. 2021. Biodiversity of Illinois. Unless otherwise noted, photos and images © Illinois Department of Natural Resources. Aquatic Habitats none Woodland Habitats none Prairie and Edge Habitats edge © Illinois Department of Natural Resources. 2021. Biodiversity of Illinois. Unless otherwise noted, photos and images © Illinois Department of Natural Resources..