Plantae > Tracheophyta > Magnoliopsida > Rosales > Rosaceae > Prunus > Prunus cerasifera

Prunus cerasifera (cherry plum)

Synonyms:

Wikipedia Abstract

Prunus cerasifera is a species of plum known by the common names cherry plum and myrobalan plum. It is native to Europe and Asia and naturalized in scattered locations in North America. Wild types are large shrubs or small trees reaching 6–15 m (20–50 feet) tall, with deciduous leaves 4–6 cm (1.6–2.4 inches) long. It is one of the first European trees to flower in spring, often starting in mid-February. The flowers are white and about 2 cm (0.8 inches) across, with five petals. The fruit is a drupe, 2–3 cm in diameter, and yellow or red. It is edible, and reaches maturity from early July to mid-September.
View Wikipedia Record: Prunus cerasifera

Infraspecies

Prunus cerasifera f. atropurpurea
Prunus cerasifera f. cerasifera
Prunus cerasifera f. spaethiana
Prunus cerasifera var. cerasifera

Attributes

Air Quality Improvement [1]  Low
Allergen Potential [1]  Medium-Low
Carbon Capture [1]  Low
Shade Percentage [1]  80 %
Temperature Reduction [1]  Low
Wind Reduction [1]  Low
Edible [2]  May be edible. See the Plants For A Future link below for details.
Flower Type [2]  Hermaphrodite
Hazards [2]  Although no specific mention has been seen for this species, it belongs to a genus where most, if not all members of the genus produce hydrogen cyanide, a poison that gives almonds their characteristic flavour. This toxin is found mainly in the leaves and seed and is readily detected by its bitter taste. It is usually present in too small a quantity to do any harm but any very bitter seed or fruit should not be eaten. In small quantities, hydrogen cyanide has been shown to stimulate respiration and improve digestion, it is also claimed to be of benefit in the treatment of cancer. In excess, however, it can cause respiratory failure and even death.
Leaf Type [2]  Deciduous
Lifespan [3]  Perennial
Pollinators [2]  Bees
Structure [2]  Tree
Usage [2]  A green dye can be obtained from the leaves; A dark grey to green dye can be obtained from the fruit; Makes quite a good windbreak hedge though it cannot stand too much exposure; Often used as a rootstock for the cultivated plums, giving them a semi-dwarfing habit;
Height [2]  30 feet (9 m)
Width [2]  30 feet (9 m)
Hardiness Zone Minimum [1]  USDA Zone: 6 Low Temperature: -10 F° (-23.3 C°) → 0 F° (-17.8 C°)
Hardiness Zone Maximum [1]  USDA Zone: 8 Low Temperature: 10 F° (-12.2 C°) → 20 F° (-6.7 C°)
Light Preference [4]  Mixed Sun/Shade
Soil Acidity [4]  Neutral
Soil Fertility [4]  Intermediate
Soil Moisture [4]  Moist
Water Use [1]  Moderate
View Plants For A Future Record : Prunus cerasifera

Protected Areas

Predators

Consumers

Parasitized by 
Erysiphe prunastri[8]

External References

USDA Plant Profile

NatureServe Explorer

Citations

Attributes / relations provided by
♦ 1i-Tree Species v. 4.0, developed by the USDA Forest Service's Northern Research Station and SUNY-ESF using the Horticopia, Inc. plant database.
♦ 2Plants For A Future licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License
♦ 3PLANTATT - Attributes of British and Irish Plants: Status, Size, Life History, Geography and Habitats, M. O. Hill, C. D. Preston & D. B. Roy, Biological Records Centre, NERC Centre for Ecology and Hydrology (2004)
♦ 4ECOFACT 2a Technical Annex - Ellenberg’s indicator values for British Plants, M O Hill, J O Mountford, D B Roy & R G H Bunce (1999)
♦ 5Biological Records Centre Database of Insects and their Food Plants
♦ 6HOSTS - a Database of the World's Lepidopteran Hostplants Gaden S. Robinson, Phillip R. Ackery, Ian J. Kitching, George W. Beccaloni AND Luis M. Hernández
♦ 7Ben-Dov, Y., Miller, D.R. & Gibson, G.A.P. ScaleNet 4 November 2009
♦ 8Jorrit H. Poelen, James D. Simons and Chris J. Mungall. (2014). Global Biotic Interactions: An open infrastructure to share and analyze species-interaction datasets. Ecological Informatics.
Abstract provided by DBpedia licensed under a Creative Commons License
Species taxanomy provided by GBIF Secretariat (2022). GBIF Backbone Taxonomy. Checklist dataset https://doi.org/10.15468/39omei accessed via GBIF.org on 2023-06-13; License: CC BY 4.0