Armenian Highlands lands, including Cilicia. The apricot was known by the Romans as the "prunus armenicus" (the Armenian plum) and was brought to Europe from the Armenian plateau. Armenian Highlands The Armenian Highlands (; also known as the Armenian Upland, Armenian plateau, Armenian tableland, or simply Armenia) is the central-most and highest of three land-locked plateaus that together form the northern sector of the Middle East. To its west is the Anatolian plateau which rises slowly from the lowland coast of the Aegean Sea and converges with the Armenian Highlands to the east of Cappadocia. To its southeast is the Iranian plateau,
Cherry plum cerasifera" var "pissardii" ("P." 'Atropurpurea'). The variety 'Nigra' with black foliage and pink flowers, has gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit. "Prunus × cistena" (purple leaf sand cherry) a hybrid of "Prunus cerasifera" and "Prunus pumila", the sand cherry, also won the Award of Garden Merit. These purple-foliage forms (often called 'purple-leaf plum'), also have dark purple fruit, which make an attractive, intensely coloured jam. They can have white or pink flowers. The cultivar 'Thundercloud' has bright red foliage which darkens purple. Others, such as 'Lindsayae', have green foliage. Some kinds of purple-leaf plums are used for