Prunus avium |
Prunus domestica |
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cerisier des oiseaux, sweet cherry, wild cherry |
common garden plum, cultivated plum, European plum, prunier damas |
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Habit | Trees, not suckering, 60–200 dm, not thorny. | Shrubs or trees, sometimes suckering, 20–60(–100) dm, not or slightly thorny. |
Twigs | with terminal end buds, glabrous. |
with axillary end buds, usually hairy, sometimes glabrous. |
Leaves | deciduous; petiole (14–)20–40 mm, nearly glabrous or sparsely hairy adaxially, glandular distally or on margins at bases of blades, glands 1–3, discoid; blade oblong, elliptic-obovate, or obovate, (4–)7–14 × (2.5–)4–8.5 cm, base obtuse to rounded, margins doubly crenate-serrate, teeth blunt, glandular, apex abruptly short-acuminate, abaxial surface moderately hairy (especially midribs and veins), adaxial glabrous. |
deciduous; petiole 6–20 mm, glabrous or hairy on adaxial surface or both surfaces, eglandular or glandular distally or on margins at bases of blades, glands 1–3; blade elliptic to obovate, (2.5–)4–7(–9) × 1.5–5 cm, base cuneate to obtuse, margins singly to doubly crenate-serrate, teeth blunt, glandular, apex usually acute to abruptly acuminate, sometimes obtuse, abaxial surface hairy (especially along veins), adaxial glabrous or midribs hairy. |
Inflorescences | 1–3-flowered, umbellate fascicles. |
solitary flowers or 2-flowered fascicles. |
Pedicels | (14–)25–52 mm, glabrous. |
(2–)10–20 mm, glabrous or hairy. |
Flowers | blooming at leaf emergence; hypanthium tubular-urceolate, 5–7 mm, glabrous externally; sepals reflexed, oblong, 4–6 mm, margins entire or sparsely and irregularly toothed, surfaces glabrous; petals white, obovate to suborbiculate, 12–15 mm; ovaries glabrous. |
blooming before or at leaf emergence; hypanthium cupulate, 3–5 mm, glabrous externally; sepals spreading to reflexed, ovate-elliptic to lanceolate, 3.5–6 mm, margins glandular-toothed, ciliate, surfaces glabrous or hairy; petals white, oblong to suborbiculate, 7–14 mm; ovaries glabrous. |
Drupes | dark red to purplish black, globose, 13–30 mm, glabrous; mesocarps fleshy; stones subglobose, not flattened. |
blue-black (green, yellow, or red in cultivars), ellipsoid to globose, 15–35 mm, glabrous; mesocarps fleshy; stones ovoid to ellipsoid, strongly flattened. |
2n | = 16. |
= 48. |
Prunus avium |
Prunus domestica |
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Phenology | Flowering Mar–May; fruiting Jun–Jul. | Flowering Apr–May; fruiting Aug–Sep. |
Habitat | Roadsides, stream banks, forest edges, disturbed forests | Roadsides, fencerows, abandoned homesites |
Elevation | 0–1600 m (0–5200 ft) | 0–1500 m (0–4900 ft) |
Distribution |
AZ; CA; CT; DC; DE; ID; IL; IN; KY; MA; MD; ME; MI; NC; NH; NJ; NY; OH; OR; PA; RI; SC; TN; UT; VA; WA; WV; WY; BC; NB; NS; ON; Eurasia [Introduced in North America]
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CA; CT; DE; ID; LA; MA; MD; ME; MI; NH; NJ; NV; NY; OH; OR; PA; RI; UT; VA; VT; WA; NB; NS; ON; QC; Eurasia [Introduced in North America]
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Discussion | Cultivars of Prunus avium are grown in North America both for their attractive flowers, especially where the Japanese ornamental cherries are not hardy, and for their sweet fruits. Most of the sweet cherry crop in North America is grown in the Pacific Coast states and in Michigan and Ontario. Most varieties are self-incompatible and require pollen from a variety in a different incompatibility group in order to set fruits. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
The distinctions given in the literature between Prunus domestica and P. insititia, and which cultivated varieties are derived from each of them, are contradictory and confusing. After examining plants from North America, it seems best to treat these Eurasian introductions as one variable species without designation of infraspecific taxa. European plums are grown along the West Coast, primarily in California, for prunes and other processed food. They are also grown in the Great Lakes region of Ontario, Michigan, and New York for both prunes and the local fresh market. Most of the commercial fresh plum market is supplied by fruits of the Japanese plum, Prunus salicina, and its hybrid derivatives, which include genetic material from native American species, for example, P. americana, P. angustifolia, and P. hortulana. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Source | FNA vol. 9, p. 368. | FNA vol. 9, p. 376. |
Parent taxa | Rosaceae > subfam. Amygdaloideae > tribe Amygdaleae > Prunus | Rosaceae > subfam. Amygdaloideae > tribe Amygdaleae > Prunus |
Sibling taxa | ||
Synonyms | P. cerasus var. avium | P. domestica subsp. insititia, P. domestica var. insititia, P. insititia |
Name authority | (Linnaeus) Linnaeus: Fl. Suec. ed. 2, 165. (1755) | Linnaeus: Sp. Pl. 1: 475. (1753) |
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