diff --git a/project/SparkBuild.scala b/project/SparkBuild.scala
index 91541a34f9605e5d7282ebfe89a8a003a7261c99..f0b371b2cf682c6e4b15f97053ed0646f396c38d 100644
--- a/project/SparkBuild.scala
+++ b/project/SparkBuild.scala
@@ -44,6 +44,10 @@ object SparkBuild extends Build {
     transitiveClassifiers in Scope.GlobalScope := Seq("sources"),
     testListeners <<= target.map(t => Seq(new eu.henkelmann.sbt.JUnitXmlTestsListener(t.getAbsolutePath))),
 
+    // Fork new JVMs for tests and set Java options for those
+    fork := true,
+    javaOptions += "-Xmx1g",
+
     // Only allow one test at a time, even across projects, since they run in the same JVM
     concurrentRestrictions in Global += Tags.limit(Tags.Test, 1),