Damson Plum Preserves

Small, oval, bluish, extremely tart damson plums (not to be confused with sweet purple plums) make the most sublime preserves on earth, the only problem being that they’ve become as rare as hen’s teeth since I was a youngster helping my mother can the ones some farmer used to sell her by the bucket. Today, fashionable markets proudly boast sapotes, loquats, cherimoyas, cactus pears, and a score of other trendy fruits, while all the time something like our Southern damson plums are allowed t