Prunus pauciflora
Bunge
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Description
A shrub or small tree that loses its leaves. Probably now Prunus pseudocerasus Lindl.;
This description is brief — help expand it
Medicinal 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 is near extinction in the wild due to anthropogenic activities.
Distribution
Temperate.
Where It Grows
Asia, China,
Notes
There are about 200 Prunus species. The name is ambiguous.
References (2)
- Enum. pl. China bor. 23. 1833 (Mem. Acad. Imp. Sci. St.-Petersbourg Divers Savans 2:97. 1835)
- Plants for a Future, The Field, Penpol, Lostwithiel, Cornwall, PL22 0NG, UK. http://www.scs.leeds.ac.uk/pfaf/
