Prunus caroliniana |
Prunus laurocerasus |
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Carolina cherry laurel or laurel cherry, Carolina laurelcherry, laurier amande |
cherry-laurel, common cherry laurel, hedge cherry laurel, laurel cherry |
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Habit | Shrubs or trees, not suckering, 40–120 dm, not thorny. | Shrubs or trees, sometimes suckering, 20–60(–100) dm, not thorny. |
Twigs | with terminal end buds, glabrous. |
with terminal end buds, glabrous. |
Leaves | persistent; petiole 5–8 mm, glabrous, eglandular; blade narrowly elliptic to elliptic or oblanceolate, 5–10 × 1.5–4 cm, base cuneate to obtuse, margins entire or spinose-serrate, sometimes undulate, teeth sharp, eglandular, apex usually acute to short-acuminate, sometimes obtuse-apiculate, apicula acute, surfaces glabrous, abaxial glandular, glands 2, proximal, flat, circular to oval. |
persistent; petiole 5–15 mm, glabrous, eglandular; blade elliptic to obovate, 6–18 × 3–7 cm, base cuneate to obtuse, margins remotely serrulate or nearly entire, teeth blunt, glandular, apex abruptly short-acuminate, apicula acute, surfaces glabrous, abaxial glandular, glands 1–several, proximal, flat, circular to oval. |
Inflorescences | 12–30-flowered, racemes; central axes 13–30(–43) mm, leafless at bases. |
26–32-flowered, racemes; central axes (35–)55–130 mm, leafless at bases. |
Pedicels | 1–4 mm, glabrous. |
1–5 mm, glabrous. |
Flowers | usually bisexual, proximal sometimes staminate, blooming before leaf emergence; hypanthium cupulate, 2.5–3 mm, glabrous externally; sepals spreading, semicircular, 0.5–1 mm, margins usually entire, sometimes glandular-toothed, surfaces glabrous; petals white, suborbiculate to elliptic, 1–1.5 mm; ovaries glabrous. |
blooming before leaf emergence; hypanthium cupulate, 3–4 mm, glabrous externally; sepals spreading, triangular, 0.7–1.2 mm, margins usually entire, sometimes with deciduous glands, ciliate in spots, surfaces glabrous or hairy; petals white, obovate or broadly elliptic to suborbiculate, 3–5 mm; ovaries glabrous. |
Drupes | black, ovoid, 9–12 mm, glabrous; mesocarps leathery; stones ovoid, not flattened, usually splitting open. |
deep purple-red to nearly black, ovoid to conic-ovoid, 13–17 mm, glabrous; mesocarps fleshy to leathery; stones ovoid, not flattened. |
2n | = 32. |
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Prunus caroliniana |
Prunus laurocerasus |
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Phenology | Flowering Feb–Apr; fruiting May–Nov. | Flowering Mar–May; fruiting Aug–Nov. |
Habitat | Stream bottoms, thickets, wooded uplands, maritime forests, naturalizing in urban woodlands | Riparian thickets, shaded ravines, understory of urban and second-growth forests |
Elevation | 0–200 m (0–700 ft) | 0–600 m (0–2000 ft) |
Distribution |
AL; AR; FL; GA; LA; MS; NC; SC; TX
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CA; OR; WA; BC; Eurasia [Introduced in North America]
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Discussion | Prunus caroliniana is a popular ornamental for screens and trimmed hedges and is widely planted in the southeastern United States because of its lustrous, dark green foliage persistent through the seasons. The species was probably common as a native plant on the southeastern barrier islands; most inland occurrences represent escapes from cultivation. It rarely escapes from cultivation in California. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Flowering specimens of Prunus laurocerasus with small leaves and entire margins that otherwise resemble P. caroliniana can be identified by their larger hypanthia and longer petals. In fruit, the stone is much harder in P. laurocerasus and does not split open upon drying; the flesh around the stone is thicker and more succulent. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Source | FNA vol. 9, p. 361. | FNA vol. 9, p. 362. |
Parent taxa | Rosaceae > subfam. Amygdaloideae > tribe Amygdaleae > Prunus | Rosaceae > subfam. Amygdaloideae > tribe Amygdaleae > Prunus |
Sibling taxa | ||
Synonyms | Padus caroliniana, Lauro-cerasus caroliniana | |
Name authority | (Miller) Aiton: Hort. Kew. 2: 163. (1789) | Linnaeus: Sp. Pl. 1: 474. (1753) |
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