Types of Plums: European, Japanese and Prune Plums

Extension sources describe two main types of plums: European plums, Prunus domestica, and Asian or Japanese plums, Prunus salicina, in University of Maryland Extension’s list, with damsons and the prune plums used for drying on the European side. In USDA FoodData Central, a cup of sliced raw plums lists about 15.7 milligrams of vitamin C (17% of the FDA Daily Value), and one pitted dried plum, or prune, about 23 calories. Below: plum varieties by species, what makes a prune plum, and USDA tables with FDC IDs and FDA percent Daily Value. Our plums guide covers the fruit in general.

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Types of plums: European and Japanese species

The NC State Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox describes the common plum, Prunus domestica, as a member of the rose family with edible purple fruits that each hold a stone, and says its cultivars bear purple, red or yellow fruit. The same NC State Extension entry calls it the latest blooming of the plums and says it is primarily grown on the west coast and in the Great Lakes area to make prunes, because of its high sugar content. NC State Extension also lists greengage and damson plums as subspecies of Prunus domestica.

For the Japanese plum, Prunus salicina, NC State Extension says the trees bloom earlier in spring and the fruits ripen earlier in summer than European plums, with fewer chilling hours needed to set fruit. According to the same Extension source, Japanese plum cultivars dominate the plum market in the United States and other countries and tend to have larger fruits, and its Prunus domestica entry adds that most plums grown for the supermarket produce section are Japanese varieties.

University of Maryland Extension groups plums with peaches, nectarines, apricots and cherries as close relatives in the Prunus genus that bear a drupe, a fruit whose single seed sits inside a hard pit. The same Extension page lists ‘Superior’ and ‘Toka’ as Asian x American hybrids and notes that Japanese plums need a second variety nearby for pollination. Our stone fruits guide sets plums next to peaches, cherries and apricots.

Plum varieties in Extension lists

University of Maryland Extension’s stone fruit page and NC State Extension’s toolbox name these plum varieties, sorted by species:

• ‘Stanley Prune’ (European): a medium-sized, dark-blue freestone plum with greenish-yellow flesh that University of Maryland Extension rates good for fresh eating, drying and canning; NC State Extension describes ‘Stanley’ with blue skin and pale yellow flesh.
• ‘Italian Prune’ (European): medium to large, purple-black fruit with freestone flesh, per University of Maryland Extension.
• ‘Damson’ (European): tangy fruit that preserves well, in the same Extension list.
• ‘Bluefre’ and ‘Bluebyrd’ (European): University of Maryland Extension lists ‘Bluefre’ with yellow freestone flesh and ‘Bluebyrd’, a USDA release, with blue skin and amber flesh.
• ‘Methley’ (Japanese): round, purple fruit with a red blush, per University of Maryland Extension.
• ‘Santa Rosa’ and ‘Ozark Premier’ (Japanese): University of Maryland Extension lists very large, red-purplish ‘Santa Rosa’ fruit and large red ‘Ozark Premier’ fruit, both with clingstone flesh.
• ‘Shiro’ and ‘Burbank’ (Japanese): ‘Shiro’ is round and yellow with very juicy clingstone flesh in the University of Maryland Extension list, and NC State Extension describes ‘Burbank’ with red to purple skin and amber yellow flesh.

Prune plums and dried plums

Prune plums are European plums grown for drying. NC State Extension says Prunus domestica is grown to make prunes because of its high sugar content, and two of the European cultivars in the University of Maryland Extension list carry the word in their names, ‘Italian Prune’ and ‘Stanley Prune’, the latter rated good for drying. USDA SR Legacy names its dried entries “Plums, dried (prunes)”, uncooked or stewed. Our prunes guide covers the dried fruit in detail.

Plum types ranked per serving in USDA data

The table uses USDA FoodData Central SR Legacy entries and USDA’s own portion for each: one cup of raw, canned or stewed plums, and one pitted dried plum. The percent Daily Value (%DV) compares each amount with the FDA Daily Values for adults and children 4 and older: 28 grams of fiber, 90 milligrams of vitamin C, 4,700 milligrams of potassium, 900 micrograms RAE of vitamin A and 120 micrograms of vitamin K. Total sugars have no FDA Daily Value, so that column shows grams only. Rows are ranked by fiber.

A cup of stewed dried plums without added sugar lists the most fiber, potassium and vitamin K here in USDA data: about 7.7 grams of fiber, 796 milligrams of potassium and 64.7 micrograms of vitamin K (27%, 17% and 54% of the FDA Daily Values), with 265 calories and 62.0 grams of total sugars. A cup of sliced raw plums lists the most vitamin C, about 15.7 milligrams, against 6.7 to 7.2 milligrams for the canned and stewed cups in USDA SR Legacy. Purple plums canned in juice or water list more vitamin A per cup than raw plums in USDA data, about 126 and 115 micrograms RAE against 28 micrograms, partly because a cup of plums canned with liquid weighs more. One pitted dried plum, 9.5 grams in USDA data, lists about 23 calories and 0.7 grams of fiber. Our lists of foods high in vitamin K, high fiber fruits and foods high in vitamin A put these numbers next to other foods.

Fresh, preserved and dried plums gram for gram

Per 100 grams in USDA SR Legacy, this table removes the difference in portion weights and adds purple plums canned in a syrup pack. Rows are ranked by fiber.

Drying concentrates everything in USDA data: uncooked dried plums hold about 30.9 grams of water per 100 grams, against 87.2 grams in raw plums, and list about 240 calories, 7.1 grams of fiber, 732 milligrams of potassium and 59.5 micrograms of vitamin K, against 46 calories, 1.4 grams, 157 milligrams and 6.4 micrograms for raw plums. Raw plums list the most vitamin C per 100 grams in USDA SR Legacy, about 9.5 milligrams. Among the purple plums canned with liquid, the water pack lists about 41 calories and 10.1 grams of total sugars per 100 grams in USDA data, against 58 calories and 14.2 grams for the juice pack and 63 calories and 15.3 grams for the syrup pack in the table. Our low calorie fruits and high potassium fruits lists rank more fruit.

Labels, packaged plums and other notes

• Daily Values: the FDA Daily Values in the tables (21 CFR 101.9) are label reference values, not personal targets.
• Packaged products: canned, dried and stewed plum products vary by recipe and packing liquid, so the Nutrition Facts label on the package is the figure for that product.
• Varieties missing from USDA: SR Legacy has no separate entries for ‘Stanley Prune’, ‘Santa Rosa’, damsons, greengages or the other varieties named above, so their values are not shown.
• Values vary: USDA SR Legacy figures are averages; variety, growing area and ripeness change the numbers for any single plum.
• Related fruit: our sibling page on types of dates covers date texture groups, ripening stages and USDA values; see also our dates and raisins guides.

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Last reviewed October 2026.

Related guides: Types of Dates: Soft, Semi-Dry and Dry, With USDA Data, Plums Benefits: USDA Plum Nutrition, Calories and Pit Safety, Prunes: USDA Nutrition, Sorbitol, Constipation and Bone Research, Stone Fruits: What Counts as a Drupe, With USDA Nutrients, Types of Peaches: Freestone, Clingstone, Yellow and White.