Tree of the Week

Week 8 - Flowering  Cherries (Prunus spp.)

A departure for Tree of the Week this week, with almost a whole genus rather than a single species of tree. I’m just being indecisive because on the streets near you right now, looking ridiculously cheerful, are so many flowering cherries of various kinds it is not realistic to choose just one. There are many varieties and they have been on our shores since the early twentieth century, with the exceptions of two natives; the bird cherry – Prunus padus, and Prunus avium, the wild cherry. Prunus avium is more common in the south of England and Prunus padus, preferring wetter and more acidic soils, in the north. They aren’t keen on cold winds and the blossom only looks amazing for a few short weeks, but you have to admit that for that time they really do the business.  Most also have great Autumn colour, in yellows and bright reds, so this isn’t the only season of interest. It can be hard to tell one from another. Almond and blackthorn blossom are both similar (both also Prunus), but you won’t mix these up as cherries always have those oval or linear horizontal markings on the bark of the trunk, which are the lenticels through which gas exchange occurs between the plant’s tissues and the atmosphere, see examples below.

Prunus padus

Prunus avium