Prunus vachuschtii

Prunus vachuschtii
the tree of Prunus Vachuschtii from up close.
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Clade:	Angiosperms
Clade:	Eudicots
Clade:	Rosids
Order:	Rosales
Family:	Rosaceae
Genus:	Prunus
Section:	Prunus sect. Prunus
Species:	P. vachuschtii
Binomial name
Prunus vachuschtii Bregadze, 1976

Prunus vachuschtii, Georgian: ალუჩა, romanized: alucha, is a species of plum that is native to the Caucasus region.

Uses

The fruit is green even when it is fully ripe

In Georgia, it is usually eaten by hand and is used to make tkemali, a tart sauce for meat dishes. Although it is probably conspecific with Prunus cerasifera, the cherry plum (in Georgian: ტყემალი, romanized: t'q'emali), Georgians distinguish the two botanically and culinarily.[1] In the Caucasus, P. vachuschtii tends to be found from Caspian sea level up to 500–700 m and P. cerasifera tends to be found at higher elevations, up to 1600–1800 m.^[citation needed]

Classification

N. N. Bregadze, who was apparently quite the splitter, described the species in 1976, and identified three forms; Prunus vachuschtii f. imeretinea, P. v. f. meczibuche, and P. v. f. vachuschtii.[2]

See also

• List of plum dishes

References

1. Batello, Caterina; Avanzato, Damiano; Akparov, Zeynal; Kartvelishvili, Tamar; Melikyan, Andreas (2010). "Chapter 5: A treasury of genetic resources is maintained in gardens" (PDF). Gardens of Biodiversity: Conservation of genetic resources and their use in traditional food production systems by small farmers of the Southern Caucasus. FAO. p. 197. ISBN 978-92-5-106613-3.
2. Bregadze N. N. Trudy Inst. Bot. Akad. Nauk Gruzinsk. S.S.R., Ser. Fl. Sist. 28:77. 1976