Prunus pseudocerasus facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Prunus pseudocerasus
Chinese sour cherry in bloom
Scientific classification
Genus:	Prunus
Species:	pseudocerasus
Synonyms
Cerasus pseudocerasus (Lindl.) Loudon Padus pseudocerasus (Lindl.) S.Ya.Sokolov Prunus ampla Koehne Prunus involucrata Koehne Prunus pauciflora Bunge Prunus saltuum Koehne Prunus scopulorum Koehne Cerasus scopulorum (Koehne) T.T.Yu & C.L.Li Prunus cantabrigiensis Stapf Cerasus cantabrigiensis (Stapf) Ohle

Prunus pseudocerasus or Prunus pseudo-cerasus, the Chinese sour cherry or just Chinese cherry, is a species of cherry native to China and is used worldwide as an ornamental for its early spring cherry blossoms. The fruits of some cultivars are edible.

Description

Prunus pseudocerasus var. cantabrigiensis flowers

A small bushy tree growing to at most 8 m, it generally has reddish buds, pale pink 2 cm flowers and typical red (if a bit pale) 1.5 cm cherries. It can be distinguished from its congeners by certain traits; its 7-16 cm leaves are broadly obovate, with an acuminate tip, flat and serrated, its inflorescences are corymbose or subumbellate, with at least three and as many as seven flowers, and its branches and peduncles are pubescent.

Uses

In China it has been cultivated for its edible (if tart) fruit for around 2000 years. In Japan it is favored as an ornamental tree for its tendency to bloom, flowers before leaves, earlier than the Japanese cherry Prunus serrulata. A tetraploid with 2n=32 chromosomes, it is used as rootstock for other flowering cherries. It is the parent of a number of hybrid cultivars. It is resistant to the fungal disease cherry leaf spot. P. pseudocerasus contain carotene, vitamin C, proteins, saccharides, iron, and phosphorus. P. pseudocerasus is near extinction in the wild due to anthropogenic activities.