Chickasaw plum, Prunus angustifolia, is Arkansas’ most common thicket-forming plum and the earliest to bloom.

Thickets at Holla Bend National Wildlife Refuge, from two to about fifteen feet in height, were so impressively massive, they seemed to monopolize acres of ground.

The species is found throughout the state, favoring sites with plenty of soil moisture.

The small, tasty plums ripen early, in May.

Written by Eric Sundell
Pictures by Martha Bowden

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