Who Doesn't Love a Cocoplum?

Who Doesn't Love a Cocoplum?
By Ellen Broderick


 Photo by Ellen Broderick


Easy to grow here in Martin County with dark purply-blue plums, occasionally white, or unusually pink. Wildlife hide and feast among the offerings of Chrysobalanus icaco. In the planned landscape cocoplum's full leafy branches work well as screens, or they can be shaped within garden islands, and even survive buzz-cuts in parking lots. Naturally they grow in South Florida swamps, moist forests, coastal beaches and thickets. Post hurricane their naked branches re-bud and grow new leaves without much fuss. 
If you've been around for a while you might know us as the "Cocoplum Chapter." The name was always Martin County but somewhere along the way we picked up the Cocoplum tag. For clarity and with a nod to the Martin County difference we've reclaimed our true name. But it's no big deal if you want to keep calling us cocoplums. They are, after all, very sweet in so many ways.




Photo by Linda Eastman

Photo by Linda Eastman




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