Prunus emarginata
Species of tree
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Prunus emarginata, the bitter cherry[3] or Oregon cherry, is a species of Prunus native to western North America.
| Prunus emarginata | |
|---|---|
| |
| Leaves and flowers | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Rosids |
| Order: | Rosales |
| Family: | Rosaceae |
| Genus: | Prunus |
| Subgenus: | Prunus subg. Cerasus |
| Species: | P. emarginata |
| Binomial name | |
| Prunus emarginata | |
 | |
| Natural range | |
| Synonyms[2] | |
| |
Description
Prunus emarginata is a deciduous shrub or small tree growing to 1–15 metres (3+1⁄2–49 feet) tall;[4] west of the Cascade Range, it commonly reaches 24–30 m (80–100 ft) tall. It has a slender oval trunk and smooth gray to reddish-brown bark with horizontal lenticels. The leaves are 2–8 centimetres (3⁄4–3+1⁄8 inches) long, thin, egg-shaped,[4] and yellowish-green with unevenly sized teeth on either side.
The flowers are small, 10–15 millimetres (3⁄8–5⁄8 in) diameter, with five white petals[4] and numerous hairlike stamens; they are almond-scented, produced in clusters in spring, and pollinated by insects.
The fruit is a juicy red or purple cherry 7–14 mm (1⁄4–1⁄2 in) diameter, which, as the plant's English name suggests, are bitter.[4] As well as reproducing by seed, it also sends out underground stems which then sprout above the surface to create a thicket.[5][6][7]
Flowers
Pits
Bark
There are two varieties:[5][3]
- Prunus emarginata var. emarginata. Usually shrubby; young shoots and leaves hairless or only thinly hairy. Most of the species' range.
- Prunus emarginata var. mollis (Dougl.) Brew. A larger tree; young shoots and leaves downy. Reddish-brown bark with light horizontal bands resembling water birch.[8] Oregon north to British Columbia, mainly coastal.
Similar species
Prunus pensylvanica, the pin cherry, is closely related.[8]
Distribution and habitat
It is native to western North America from British Columbia south to Baja California, and east as far as western Wyoming and New Mexico.[9][10] It is often found in recently disturbed areas or open woods on nutrient-rich soil.[11][5][6]
Ecology
Mammals, deer and livestock forage on the leaves.[12] The cherries are eaten by some birds (especially cedar waxwing),[13] who in turn distribute the seeds.[8] The seeds have hard shells which can preserve them for decades before being released by fire.[8]
The tree is a larval host to the blinded sphinx, elegant sphinx, Lorquin's admiral, pale tiger swallowtail, small-eyed sphinx, spring azure, twin-spotted sphinx, and western tiger swallowtail.[14]
Cultivation
It has hybridized with the introduced European Prunus avium in the Puget Sound area; the hybrid has been named Prunus × pugetensis. It is intermediate between the parent species, but is nearly sterile, producing almost no cherries.[15]
Uses
The extremely bitter cherries are inedible to humans.[13] Native Americans used the bark in basket making.[8]
Medicinal
Native tribes, most notably Kwakwaka'wakw, used parts of the plant for medicinal purposes, such as poultices and bark infusions.[16] The isoflavone prunetin was isolated for the first time by Finnemore in 1910 from the bark of P. emarginata.[17]
