ˈhorse-plum
1. A small red variety of plum.
| 1530 Palsgr. 232/2 Horse plome, frute, jorroise. 1546 J. Heywood Prov. (1867) 20 Her cheekes are purple ruddie lyke a horse plumme. 1648 Gage West Ind. 28 A great black kernell as big as our horse Plums. 1886 Britten & Holland Plant-n., Horse Plum, a small red plum. |
2. N. Amer. Either of the two common wild plums, Prunus americana or P. nigra.
| 1790 S. Deane New-Eng. Farmer 222/2 The horse⁓plum, a very pleasant tasted juicy fruit, of a large size. 1827 Western Monthly Rev. I. 322 The fruit is of the size of a common horse plum. 1908 N. L. Britton N. Amer. Trees 494 Canada Plum—Prunus nigra Aiton. Also called Horse plum, this is a small, bushy tree, occurring in woods and neglected lands from Newfoundland to Alberta, and southward to Georgia. |