Prunus fruticosa
Dwarf cherry (Prunus fruticosa )
Called The dwarf cherry (Prunus fruticosa), also steppe cherry or dwarf sour cherry, a plant of the rose family is ( Rosaceae ). This shrub bears edible, about 1 centimeter wide, red fruits.
Description
The dwarf cherry is a deciduous, sparrig branched and foothills forming shrub without thorns, the plant height of 0.2 to 1 meters, achieved in rare cases up to 1.5 meters. The branches are thin and bald. The leaves have a obovate to elliptical, scarcely pointed leaf blade with notched or serrated leaf edge. They are 2-5 inches long and have a shiny, dark green top and a lighter, bare bottom. The petiole reaches a length of 0.5 to 1.2 centimeters.
The white flowers are about 1.5 inches wide, long stalks and are about two to five in sessile, crowded umbels arranged. The sepals are broad and obtuse, the petals emarginate something. The flowering season lasts from April to May
The stone fruits are globose and large up to 1 inch. They are ripe in June and then coral, rare black and tan. The fully ripe fruits are edible and a popular wild fruit.
Distribution and habitat requirements
The distribution of dwarf cherry extends across Central and Eastern Europe from the southern Rhine Valley and the Apennine peninsula on the eastern Alps edge up to Thuringia, the Caucasus and western Siberia and Central Asia. They are usually found on calcareous soils in arid bushes, on dry slopes at Wegsäumen and in ravines and abandoned quarries. It is warmth, usually frost hardy and prefers sunny to light shady locations.
System
The dwarf cherry belongs to another with the Vistula (Prunus cerasus ) and the bird cherry (Prunus avium) to section Cerasus subgenus Cerasus, which is counted to the genus Prunus. A synonym of Prunus cerasus is Cerasus fruticosa.
Use
The dwarf cherry is rarely used due to the decorative flowers and fruits as an ornamental plant, it also donates pollen and nectar for bees.