Prunus cerasus L., Rosaceae

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Present on Pacific Islands?  yes

Primarily a threat at high elevations?  yes

Other Latin names:  Cerasus vulgaris Miller; Prunus vulgaris Schur

Common name(s): [more details]

Chinese: ou zhou suan ying tao

English: dwarf cherry, morello cherry, pie cherry, sour cherry, tart cherry

French: cerisier acide, griottier

Spanish: cerezo ácido, guindo

Habit:  tree

Description:  "Deciduous, suckering, rounded tree, 4-6-(10) m high when mature, not armed; trunk short; primary branches ascending; secondary branches spreading, sometimes pendulous. Leaf petiole 12-30-(40) mm long, glabrous; blade ± thin, obovate to broadly elliptic, 40-120 x 25-50 mm, short-acuminate or cuspidate at apex, broadly cuneate to rounded at base, glabrous or with a few long hairs above, glabrous below or occasionally with a few hairs at base of lateral veins, 1-2-serrate with teeth blunt (sometimes with a short dark cusp); stipules triangular, acuminate, early deciduous. Flowers in umbel-like clusters of (1)-2-4, on very short shoots, not fragrant, pendent; pedicels 10-20 mm long, glabrous. Hypanthium broadly campanulate; sepals triangular, 3-5 mm long, blunt, glabrous and greenish purple, becoming reflexed. Petals 5, spreading, orbicular, 8-12 mm in diameter, very shallowly emarginate, white. Stamens ± = to petals; filaments whitish. Fruit 10-17 mm in diameter, globose, glabrous, dark red, sour; stone smooth"  (Webb et al., 1988; p. 1084).

Habitat/ecology:  In New Zealand, "roadsides, rocky banks, stream margins"  (Webb et al., 1988; p. 1084).

Propagation:  Seed; locally by suckers.

Native range:  Origin Eurasia, only cultivated (GRIN).

Presence:

Pacific
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
Chile (offshore islands) Juan Fernández Islands	Isla Más a Tierra (Robinson Crusoe Island)	introduced invasive	Atkinson, Rachel/Sawyer, John (2011)
Chile (offshore islands) Juan Fernández Islands	Isla Más a Tierra (Robinson Crusoe Island)	introduced invasive	Danton, Philippe/Perrier, Christophe/Martinez Reyes, Guido (2006) (p. 556)

Pacific Rim
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
Australia Australia (continental)	New South Wales	introduced invasive	National Herbarium of New South Wales (2011)
Canada Province of British Columbia	Canada (British Columbia)	introduced	U.S. Dept. Agr., Nat. Res. Cons. Serv. (2011)
Canada Canada	Canada (country)	introduced	U.S. Dept. Agr., Nat. Res. Cons. Serv. (2011)
China China	China (People's Republic of)	introduced cultivated	Zhengyi, Wu/Raven, Peter H./Deyuan, Hong (2011) Cultivated throughout China.
New Zealand New Zealand	New Zealand (country)	introduced invasive cultivated	Webb, C. J./Sykes, W. R./Garnock-Jones, P. J. (1988) (p. 1084)
United States (west coast) United States (west coast states)	USA (Washington)	introduced	U.S. Dept. Agr., Nat. Res. Cons. Serv. (2011)

Also reported from
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
United States (continental except west coast) United States (other states)	United States (other states)	introduced	U.S. Dept. Agr., Nat. Res. Cons. Serv. (2011)

Additional information:
Additional online information about Prunus cerasus is available from the Hawaiian Ecosystems at Risk project (HEAR).

Information about Prunus cerasus as a weed (worldwide references) may be available from the Global Compendium of Weeds (GCW).

Taxonomic information about Prunus cerasus may be available from the Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN).

References:

Atkinson, Rachel/Sawyer, John. 2011. Naturalized species in the Juan Fernández Archipelago, Chile. Unpublished spreadsheet.

Danton, Philippe/Perrier, Christophe/Martinez Reyes, Guido. 2006. Nouveau catalogue de la flore vaculaire de l'archipel Juan Fernández (Chile) [Nuevo catálogo de la flora vacular del Archipélago Juan Fernández (Chile)]. Acta Bot. Gallica 153(4):399-587.

National Herbarium of New South Wales. 2011. PlantNet: New South Wales Flora online. The Plant Information Network System of the Botanic Gardens Trust Version 2.0. Online resource.

U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. 2011. National Genetic Resources Program. Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN). Online searchable database.

U.S. Dept. Agr., Nat. Res. Cons. Serv. 2011. The PLANTS Database. National Plant Data Center, Baton Rouge, LA 70874-4490 USA.

Webb, C. J./Sykes, W. R./Garnock-Jones, P. J. 1988. Flora of New Zealand, Volume IV: Naturalised pteridophytes, gymnosperms, dicotyledons. Botany Division, DSIR, Christchurch. 1365 pp.

Zhengyi, Wu/Raven, Peter H./Deyuan, Hong. 2011. Flora of China (online resource).