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cerisier acide, cultivated sour cherry, pie cherry, sour cherry

Havard's almond, Havard's plum

Habit Shrubs or trees, suckering, 30–50(–80) dm, not thorny. Shrubs, suckering unknown, much branched, 10–20 dm, thorny.
Twigs

with terminal end buds, glabrous.

with axillary end buds, puberulent.

Leaves

deciduous;

petiole 10–24 mm, glabrous, usually eglandular, sometimes with discoid marginal glands at bases of blades;

blade broadly elliptic to ovate or obovate, 4.4–6(–8) × 2.8–4(–6) cm, base obtuse to rounded, margins doubly crenate-serrate, teeth blunt, glandular, apex acute to abruptly acuminate, abaxial surface glabrous or glabrate, adaxial glabrous.

deciduous;

petiole 1–3 mm, glabrous or puberulent, eglandular;

blade rhombic, obovate, or fan-shaped, 0.5–1.6(–2) × 0.2–0.8(–1.4) cm, base broadly obtuse or rounded to nearly truncate, margins serrate or dentate in distal 1/2, teeth blunt to sharp, some callus-tipped, rarely glandular, apex rounded to obtuse, surfaces puberulent.

Inflorescences

1–4-flowered, umbellate fascicles.

solitary flowers.

Pedicels

8–37 mm, glabrous.

0 mm.

Flowers

blooming at leaf emergence;

hypanthium tubular-campanulate, 4–6 mm, glabrous externally;

sepals reflexed, oblong, 4–7 mm, margins regularly glandular-toothed, surfaces glabrous;

petals white, suborbiculate, 10–14 mm;

ovaries glabrous.

unisexual, plants dioecious, blooming at leaf emergence;

hypanthium campanulate, 2.5–3 mm, glabrous externally;

sepals spreading to reflexed, triangular, 0.7–1 mm, margins entire, sparsely ciliate, surfaces glabrate;

petals white, obovate, 2 mm;

ovaries hairy.

Drupes

bright red, globose, 13–20 mm, glabrous;

mesocarps fleshy;

stones subglobose, not flattened.

reddish brown, ovoid, 8–11 mm, puberulent;

hypanthium tardily deciduous;

mesocarps leathery to dry (splitting);

stones ovoid, slightly flattened.

2n

= 32.

Prunus cerasus

Prunus havardii

Phenology Flowering Apr–May; fruiting Jun–Jul. Flowering Apr–Jun; fruiting Jun–Aug.
Habitat Roadsides, thickets, woodland borders, abandoned fields Draws, dry rocky slopes of canyons, limestone soil, igneous rock
Elevation 0–1000 m (0–3300 ft) 700–1700 m (2300–5600 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
AK; CA; CT; DC; DE; GA; IA; ID; IL; IN; KS; KY; MA; MD; ME; MI; MO; MT; NC; NE; NH; NJ; NM; NY; OH; OR; PA; RI; VA; VT; WA; WV; BC; NB; NS; ON; PE; QC; Eurasia [Introduced in North America]
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
TX; Mexico (Chihuahua)
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Cultivars of Prunus cerasus with doubled flowers are used as landscape ornamentals. Most of the commercial sour cherry crop in North America comes from Michigan. Unlike sweet cherry, all widely grown varieties of sour cherry are self-fertile. Bud scales at the bases of the pedicels on flowering and immature fruiting specimens of P. cerasus often have leaflike apices and the inner scales are erect; in P. avium the scales are not leaflike and the inner ones are reflexed or spreading.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Prunus havardii is endemic to the Chihuahuan Desert of trans-Pecos Texas and across the Rio Grande in Mexico, with most collections from the Big Bend area.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Source FNA vol. 9, p. 368. FNA vol. 9, p. 371.
Parent taxa Rosaceae > subfam. Amygdaloideae > tribe Amygdaleae > Prunus Rosaceae > subfam. Amygdaloideae > tribe Amygdaleae > Prunus
Sibling taxa
P. americana, P. andersonii, P. angustifolia, P. armeniaca, P. avium, P. caroliniana, P. cerasifera, P. domestica, P. dulcis, P. emarginata, P. eremophila, P. fasciculata, P. fremontii, P. geniculata, P. glandulosa, P. gracilis, P. havardii, P. hortulana, P. ilicifolia, P. laurocerasus, P. lusitanica, P. mahaleb, P. maritima, P. mexicana, P. minutiflora, P. murrayana, P. myrtifolia, P. nigra, P. padus, P. pensylvanica, P. persica, P. pumila, P. rivularis, P. serotina, P. speciosa, P. spinosa, P. subcordata, P. subhirtella, P. texana, P. tomentosa, P. umbellata, P. virginiana, P. yedoensis
P. americana, P. andersonii, P. angustifolia, P. armeniaca, P. avium, P. caroliniana, P. cerasifera, P. cerasus, P. domestica, P. dulcis, P. emarginata, P. eremophila, P. fasciculata, P. fremontii, P. geniculata, P. glandulosa, P. gracilis, P. hortulana, P. ilicifolia, P. laurocerasus, P. lusitanica, P. mahaleb, P. maritima, P. mexicana, P. minutiflora, P. murrayana, P. myrtifolia, P. nigra, P. padus, P. pensylvanica, P. persica, P. pumila, P. rivularis, P. serotina, P. speciosa, P. spinosa, P. subcordata, P. subhirtella, P. texana, P. tomentosa, P. umbellata, P. virginiana, P. yedoensis
Synonyms Amygdalus havardii
Name authority Linnaeus: Sp. Pl. 1: 474. (1753) (W. Wight) S. C. Mason: J. Agric. Res. 1: 153, 176. (1913)
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