European plum (Prunus domestica), damson plum (P. domestica insititia), Japanese plum (P. salicina). There are plums that will grow in every state in the United States as well as in most of southern Canada. Nearly all are good for eating fresh and for canning as well as for making preserves; some varieties can also be dried as prunes.

Nearly all prunes are produced on the West Coast, where the warm temperatures and low humidity permit the fruit to dry readily. Most standard-sized plum trees may reach a height and spread of about 15 to 20 feet; dwarf trees grow only 8 to 10 feet tall.

The following varieties of European plums are recommended; all will grow in Zones 5-7, and Burbank Grand Prize prune will also grow in Zone 8. All ripen in midsummer: Blufre prune, blue; Burbank Grand Prize prune, purple; Green Gage, also called Reine Claude, greenish yellow; Stanley prune, purple; and Yellow Egg, bright yellow. Green Gage, Stanley and Yellow Egg are self-pollinating and will bear fruit if planted alone. Plant Blufre and Burbank Grand Prize (or other European varieties) together, for pollination of one variety by the pollen from another is usually necessary for the trees to bear fruit. Damson plums are generally too tart to eat fresh unless very ripe, but make excellent preserves.

Persimmon trees may live for 50 years or more, and a mature tree yields 75 to 100 pounds of fruit annually.

Persimmon trees grow best in soil with a pH of 6.0 to 7.0. For fruit within three years, buy one- or two-year-old trees. Set out container-grown trees at any time, but plant bare-rooted trees in early spring as soon as the ground can be worked. Cut off all but three to five well- placed branches, spaced 6 to 12 inches apart and forming angles greater than 45 degrees with the trunk. Cut these branches (on a bare-rooted tree only) to 6 to 8 inches. Beginning the second spring, apply 1 pound of 10-10-10 fertilizer for each year the tree has been planted, up to a maximum of 5 pounds per tree. Thin out the fruit until the persimmons are 6 to 7 inches apart.

For cooking purposes pick plums when they become covered with a waxy white coating called bloom and are firm but springy to the touch. For eating fresh or for drying, pick them when they become soft and fully ripe and are easily twisted off.