Scientific Name:
Prunus avium
Pronunciation:
PROO-nus aye-VEE-um
Common Name:
sweet cherry, bird cherry
Family Name:
Rosaceae
Plant Type:
Tree - deciduous
Key ID Features:
Exfoliating bark; leaves elliptic, serrated margin; flowers solitary, petals white and about 1cm long; drupes oval shaped, cherries about 1cm long. Winter ID: buds clustered, ovoid; flower buds more rounded, about 5-7mm long x 3-4mm wide; leaf scars half-round to crescent shaped with 3 bundle scars.
Habit:
Irregular, Spreading, Upright
Form:
Oval - vertical, Round
Texture:
Medium - coarse
Mature Height:
15 - 22m
Mature Spread:
10 - 15m
Growth Rate:
Moderate
Origin:
Africa, Europe, South Asia / India
Hardiness Rating:
Zone 5: (-29 to -23 °C)
Exposure:
Full sun, Part sun/part shade
Soil/Growing Medium:
Well-drained
Water Use:
Moderate
Landscape Uses:
Attract beneficial insects, Attract birds, Urban agriculture
Leaf Morphology:
Form:
Simple
Arrangement:
Alternate
Texture/Venation:
Soft flexible
Surfaces:
Lustrous
Colour in Summer:
Dark-green, bronze when young
Colour in Fall:
Yellow, Red
Shapes:
Ovate
Apices:
Acute
Bases:
Cordate
Margins:
Serrate
Additional Info:
Spectacular fall colour
Inflorescence Type:
Flowers clustered, Floriferous
Flower Morphology:
Flowers perfect
Number Of Petals:
5
Corolla Shape:
Rotate/stellate
Ovary Position:
Inferior
Colour (petals):
Showy, White
Flower Time at Peak:
Mar, Apr
Fruit Type:
Drupe
Fruit Colour:
Dark-red
Fruiting Time:
Jun, Jul
Additional Info:
Showy,
Bark Morphology:
Exfoliating, Prominent lenticels
Bark or Stem Colour:
Red
Additional Info:
Banded
Leaf Bud Type:
Ovoid
Leaf Scar Shape:
Half-round
Propagation:
Seed, Greenwood cuttings, Softwood cuttings
Pest Susceptibility:
Galls, Mites, Nematodes, Scale insects, Virus (Rabbit resistant)
Course(s):
- HORT 1155
Location(s):
- (ENA) Eastern North American planting
- (FEA) Field lab Equipment Area : confirm species
- (FSC) Far South Campus
- (TFL) Turf Field Lab
- (TFLE) Turf Field Lab East
- (TFLN) Turf Field Lab North
- (WDH) Wark-Dumais House
- (WLG) WoodLand Garden