Today I was alerted to Beach Plum Week, happening in the adjacent neighborhood of Long Island City, Queens. I’d never heard of beach plums before this, but turns out they are plums indigenous to New York City and Long Island. Like a lot of plums they are slightly tart, and I imagine that increases around the pit and in the skin. They are also very small, like a half to one inch in diameter.
From what I can gather, beach plums do not grow on tall trees but on more of a bushy, lower-lying plant. It also seems they like sandy soil (hence the “beach” in their name), but can grow in heavier soil, too. At first I thought the plum trees outside in the backyard might be beach plums, but after reading a little bit about them it doesn’t sound like it; what my plums are is still a mystery to me.