Prunus mume
species of plant
Prunus mume, also known as a Chinese plum, is a tree species in the family Rosaceae. It is also referenced by its flowers as plum blossom. Although referred to as a plum in English, it is classified in the Armeniaca section of the genus Prunus, making it an apricot. Mei flowers, or meihua (梅花), which bloom in the late winter and early spring, notably during the spring festival (春節), symbolize endurance, as they are the first to bloom despite the cold; the flower is one of the Three Friends of Winter.
The plant is intimately associated with art, literature, and everyday life in China, from where it was then introduced to Korea, Vietnam, and Japan. In East Asian cuisine (Chinese, Japanese, Korean, and Vietnamese cuisine), the fruit, known as meizi (梅子) in Chinese, is used in juices and sauces; as a flavoring for alcohol; and may be pickled or dried. It is also used in traditional Chinese medicine. Meihua are also appreciated for their characteristic fragrance, which is unique among apricots.
Prunus mume should not be confused with the plum Prunus salicina, a related species also grown in China, Japan, Korea, and Vietnam also referred to with the common name of Chinese plum, nor with the common apricot Prunus armeniaca, which is closely related under the same section.
Origin
Prunus mume originated in the region around the Yangtze River in southern China and was cultivated domestically for both its ornamental beauty and its fruit.
This brief starts where responsible research should: with the source description of “Prunus mume” as species of plant. Everything that follows is an evidence route, not borrowed authority.
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The subject matters to the science & nature register because the source frames it as species of plant. Its deeper value depends on whether names, dates, institutions and citations support that framing.
The date and method of observation matter as much as the stated conclusion, especially where classification or consensus has changed. The source revision retrieved here is dated Aug 16, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q157763. The Library of Congress control number is sh97007276. None of the 1 selected statements returned an explicit reference.
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This entry incorporates text from “Prunus mume” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.