“There’s a market for but picking them wild is hit or miss. In the late 1970s, Tom Wickham began growing approximately 20 shrubs on farmland the family used to own on Ackerly Pond Lane in Southold. There have been efforts to tame the elusive species. “We all made beach plum jam - no one eats beach plums raw,” he added. “Beach plums can survive pretty adverse conditions,” explained Tom Wickham, who recalls foraging for them with Parnel, his sister, on the dunes in Napeague and along the bay. Beach plums blossom in May, producing delicate, cloud-white flowers before setting fruit that ripens in shades of purple and dark blue - and, rarely, crimson and gold - in late August. Early settlers and explorers took note of their presence along the coast, and they served as inspiration for naming areas like Plum Island.Ī perennial shrub, the beach plum is native to sandy dunes and grows densely along the Atlantic coast from Maryland to southern Maine. Indigenous people, including the Shinnecocks, collected the tart, cherry-like fruits. The native beach plum, or Prunus maritima, offers a glimpse into the past. Unless you make it yourself, you’ll likely seek it out from one of several local farms that release a limited stock of the ruby red jams, jellies and syrups that are known to sell out quickly.
You make a big mess and then you enjoy eating it later.”īeach plum jam isn’t the type of product you’ll find on a supermarket shelf. “It can be a lot of work, but it’s something you do together. She places the emphasis on “we,” cautioning that this isn’t a solitary activity, but a social one. “We would make a day of it,” explained Parnel Wickham, a Cutchogue resident whose familial roots in the area can be traced back to 1699. It’s a coastal tradition on par with learning to sail, build a sandcastle, catch a fish.įor others unfamiliar with the fruit, the appeal of the beach plum can be shrouded in secrecy.
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Generations of East Enders can recall foraging for beach plums along the shore, scouting for a patch of the shrubs, gnarled and windswept from years of surviving the elements.Ĭoveted, swear-you’ll-never-tell spots, family jam recipes and stories of collecting the dark, tannic fruits on late summer afternoons have been passed down, cherished through the ages.
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