''Prunus fruticosa'', the European dwarf cherry,
dwarf cherry Dwarf cherry as a name has been used for at least three species of small cherry trees:
*''Prunus cerasus''
*'' Prunus fruticosa''
* '' Prunus pumila''
An unrelated Australian tree with cherry-like fruit:
*'' Exocarpus strictus''
Cultivars of the s ...
, Mongolian cherry or steppe cherry is a
deciduous
In the fields of horticulture and Botany, the term ''deciduous'' () means "falling off at maturity" and "tending to fall off", in reference to trees and shrubs that seasonally shed leaves, usually in the autumn; to the shedding of petals, ...
,
xerophytic
A xerophyte (from Greek ξηρός ''xeros'' 'dry' + φυτόν ''phuton'' 'plant') is a species of plant that has adaptations to survive in an environment with little liquid water, such as a desert such as the Sahara or places in the Alps or t ...
, winter-hardy, cherry-bearing
shrub. It is also called
ground cherry and European ground cherry, but is not to be confused with plants in the distinct "Groundcherry" genus of ''
Physalis
''Physalis'' (, , , , from φυσαλλίς ''phusallís'' "bladder") is a genus of approximately 75 to 90 flowering plants in the nightshade family (Solanaceae), which are native to the Americas and Australasia. At least 46 species are endemic ...
''.
''Prunus fruticosa'' is native to
Ciscaucasia, western
Siberia
Siberia ( ; rus, Сибирь, r=Sibir', p=sʲɪˈbʲirʲ, a=Ru-Сибирь.ogg) is an extensive region, geographical region, constituting all of North Asia, from the Ural Mountains in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east. It has been a ...
,
Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country located mainly in Central Asia and partly in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the north and west, China to the east, Kyrgyzstan to the southeast, Uzbeki ...
,
Xinjiang
Xinjiang, SASM/GNC: ''Xinjang''; zh, c=, p=Xīnjiāng; formerly romanized as Sinkiang (, ), officially the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region (XUAR), is an autonomous region of the People's Republic of China (PRC), located in the northwest ...
China, western
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...
,
Ukraine
Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...
,
Poland
Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...
,
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The ...
,
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
,
Belarus
Belarus,, , ; alternatively and formerly known as Byelorussia (from Russian ). officially the Republic of Belarus,; rus, Республика Беларусь, Respublika Belarus. is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by ...
,
Moldova
Moldova ( , ; ), officially the Republic of Moldova ( ro, Republica Moldova), is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by Romania to the west and Ukraine to the north, east, and south. The unrecognised state of Transnistr ...
,
Bulgaria
Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedo ...
,
Romania
Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Moldova to the east, and ...
,
Hungary
Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the ...
,
Serbia
Serbia (, ; Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Basin and the Balkans. It shares land borders with Hungar ...
,
Austria
Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...
, and
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...
.
Description
As a shrub ''Prunus fruticosa'' grows high and as wide, in almost any soil, but best in loamy soil, spreading via
sucker
Sucker may refer to:
General use
* Lollipop or sucker, a type of confection
* Sucker (slang), a slang term for a very gullible person
* Hard candy
** Cough drop
** Mint (candy)
Biology
* Sucker (botany), a term for a shoot that arises undergro ...
s. Roots are abundant. The plant requires full sun, it is a
steppe rather than a
forest
A forest is an area of land dominated by trees. Hundreds of definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing, and ecological function. The United Nations' ...
plant, although it does form thickets at the edges of open forest.
The
bark is dark brown with yellow
lenticels. The
leaves are oblanceolate to obovate, about 12 mm by 6 mm, with acuminate apex,
glabrous
Glabrousness (from the Latin '' glaber'' meaning "bald", "hairless", "shaved", "smooth") is the technical term for a lack of hair, down, setae, trichomes or other such covering. A glabrous surface may be a natural characteristic of all or part of ...
above, thick, serrated with crenate margin, dark green, yellow in autumn, with a short
petiole.
The
flower
A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants (plants of the division Angiospermae). The biological function of a flower is to facilitate reproduction, usually by providing a mechani ...
s are white
hermaphroditic
In reproductive biology, a hermaphrodite () is an organism that has both kinds of reproductive organs and can produce both gametes associated with male and female sexes.
Many taxonomic groups of animals (mostly invertebrates) do not have s ...
blossoms in leafy
bracts located 2-4 each on short
peduncles in
sessile
Sessility, or sessile, may refer to:
* Sessility (motility), organisms which are not able to move about
* Sessility (botany), flowers or leaves that grow directly from the stem or peduncle of a plant
* Sessility (medicine), tumors and polyps that ...
umbel
In botany, an umbel is an inflorescence that consists of a number of short flower stalks (called pedicels) that spread from a common point, somewhat like umbrella ribs. The word was coined in botanical usage in the 1590s, from Latin ''umbella'' "p ...
s. They are pollinated by
bees. In the Northern Hemisphere, the plant flowers in May. The
fruit
In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants that is formed from the ovary after flowering.
Fruits are the means by which flowering plants (also known as angiosperms) disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in particu ...
is light to dark red, globose to pyriform, about 8–25 mm in diameter, ripening in August. The taste is sour-sweet, or tart.
Uses
As a sour tasting cherry, the fruit is used in cooking, and for jams and jellies. It has medicinal uses as an
astringent
An astringent (sometimes called adstringent) is a chemical that shrinks or constricts body tissues. The word derives from the Latin ''adstringere'', which means "to bind fast". Calamine lotion, witch hazel, and yerba mansa, a Californian pla ...
. The flowers are its basis of bee-keeping honey plant.
Cultivation
''Prunus fruticosa'' is planted in
hedgerows as an
ornamental plant
Ornamental plants or garden plants are plants that are primarily grown for their beauty but also for qualities such as scent or how they shape physical space. Many flowering plants and garden varieties tend to be specially bred cultivars that ...
privacy screen and
windbreak
A windbreak (shelterbelt) is a planting usually made up of one or more rows of trees or shrubs planted in such a manner as to provide shelter from the wind and to protect soil from erosion. They are commonly planted in hedgerows around the edges ...
, and as a host plant for bees and other beneficial insects and birds. The shrub's network of penetrating roots are useful for soil stabilization in designed landscapes and
habitat restoration
Restoration ecology is the scientific study supporting the practice of ecological restoration, which is the practice of renewing and restoring degraded, damaged, or destroyed ecosystems and habitats in the environment by active human interrupt ...
projects.
The hardiness of ''Prunus fruticosa'' is a desirable quality in grafting and production of
horticultural
Horticulture is the branch of agriculture that deals with the art, science, technology, and business of plant cultivation. It includes the cultivation of fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, herbs, sprouts, mushrooms, algae, flowers, seaweeds and no ...
cultivar
A cultivar is a type of cultivated plant that people have selected for desired traits and when propagated retain those traits. Methods used to propagate cultivars include: division, root and stem cuttings, offsets, grafting, tissue culture ...
s. It is grafted to ''
Prunus avium
''Prunus avium'', commonly called wild cherry, sweet cherry, gean, or bird cherryWorld Economic Plants: A Standard Reference, Second Edition'. CRC Press; 19 April 2016. . p. 833–. is a species of cherry, a flowering plant in the rose family, ...
'' 'tree' rootstock, forming rounded top trees.
[
]
Classification
;Linnaeus
Linnaeus included this species in his ''Species Plantarum'', referencing the ''Pinax'' of Gaspard Bauhin
Gaspard Bauhin or Caspar Bauhin ( la, Casparus Bauhinus; 17 January 1560 – 5 December 1624), was a Swiss botanist whose ''Pinax theatri botanici'' (1623) described thousands of plants and classified them in a manner that draws comparisons to t ...
, to whom he gives credit as "Bauh. pin. 450." The name assigned by Linnaeus is ''Prunus cerasus pumila'', where ''pumila'' means "dwarf" (a rare word in Latin) and must come from Bauhin. He regards the shub as a variety of ''Prunus cerasus
''Prunus cerasus'' (sour cherry, tart cherry, or dwarf cherry) is a species of ''Prunus'' in the subgenus '' Cerasus'' (cherries), native to much of Europe and southwest Asia. It is closely related to the sweet cherry (''Prunus avium''), but ha ...
'', the sour cherry.
;Pallas
It was first authoritatively defined by Peter Simon Pallas
Peter Simon Pallas FRS FRSE (22 September 1741 – 8 September 1811) was a Prussian zoologist and botanist who worked in Russia between 1767 and 1810.
Life and work
Peter Simon Pallas was born in Berlin, the son of Professor of Surgery ...
, the German naturalist invited by Catherine the Great to work in St. Petersburg
Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...
. His unfinished ''Flora Rossica'', a description of all the plants in the Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...
n Empire, dedicates one page to ''Prunus fruticosa'', a shrub found ''in campis Isetensibus'', "in the plains of the Iset;" that is, the Siberia
Siberia ( ; rus, Сибирь, r=Sibir', p=sʲɪˈbʲirʲ, a=Ru-Сибирь.ogg) is an extensive region, geographical region, constituting all of North Asia, from the Ural Mountains in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east. It has been a ...
n steppe. He states the Linnaean synonym, giving the same reference to Bauhin, but makes the variety into a species, ''Pr. fruticosa''. The last paragraph of Page 19 states his reasons for the classification, which have nothing to do with the name, but are in true Linnaean cryptic form, in this case a pun
A pun, also known as paronomasia, is a form of word play that exploits multiple meanings of a term, or of similar-sounding words, for an intended humorous or rhetorical effect. These ambiguities can arise from the intentional use of homophoni ...
.
The two Latin words of the pun are ''fructus'' or ''frux'', from ''fruor'', "enjoy" - a fruit is a result enjoyed - and ''frutex'', "shrub", adjective ''fruticosus'', "bushy", from a totally different root. ''Prunus'' is a grammatical feminine, so ''Prunus fruticosa'' agrees in gender. However, Pallas says ''Haec mihi tantum fructibus suis innotuit, qui distinctam itidem speciem indicare videntur'', "It came to my attention at last because of its fruit, which repeatedly seemed to indicate a distinct species." The fruit seemed ''fere Pruni forma'', "nearly in the form of ''Prunus''", especially because ''praedita oblongo nucleo'', "furnished with an oblong seed." So, Pallas moved it from ''Cerasus'' to ''Prunus''.
;Woronow
In 1925 Yury Nikolaevich Voronov, known botanically as (Ju.N, G., G.N. or GJN) Woronow, made an unsuccessful effort to retain ''Cerasus'' as a genus name and move ''fruticosa'' to it, creating another synonym, ''Cerasus fruticosa''.
Hybridisation and genetic erosion
''Prunus fruticosa'', a tetraploid
Polyploidy is a condition in which the cells of an organism have more than one pair of ( homologous) chromosomes. Most species whose cells have nuclei (eukaryotes) are diploid, meaning they have two sets of chromosomes, where each set contains ...
with 2n=32 chromosomes, is thought to be one of the parent species of ''Prunus cerasus
''Prunus cerasus'' (sour cherry, tart cherry, or dwarf cherry) is a species of ''Prunus'' in the subgenus '' Cerasus'' (cherries), native to much of Europe and southwest Asia. It is closely related to the sweet cherry (''Prunus avium''), but ha ...
'' (the sour cherry) by way of ancient crosses between it and ''Prunus avium
''Prunus avium'', commonly called wild cherry, sweet cherry, gean, or bird cherryWorld Economic Plants: A Standard Reference, Second Edition'. CRC Press; 19 April 2016. . p. 833–. is a species of cherry, a flowering plant in the rose family, ...
'' (the wild/sweet cherry) in the areas where the two species overlap. Both species can interbreed with each other, as well as with ''Prunus cerasus''.
''Prunus cerasus'' is now a species in its own right having developed beyond a hybrid and stabilized.
A recent study of native ''Prunus fruticosa'' stands in northern Poland
Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...
finds that it is disappearing there by " genetic erosion" or "disappearance of typical morphological characters". It hybridizes naturally with ''Prunus cerasus'' to form '' Prunus × eminens'', and with ''Prunus avium'' to form '' Prunus × stacei''.
These forest plants are brought into closer contact with ''Prunus fruticosa'' by the modern disappearance of "contemporaneous sites of the steppe relics" once common in northern Poland, due to forest management since the 18th century, and the planting of stands of ''Prunus cerasus'', which are more prolific in pollen.
References
External links
*
*
{{Taxonbar, from=Q164174
Cherries
fruticosa
Flora of Europe
Flora of Central Asia
Flora of Xinjiang
Flora of Siberia
Flora of Russia
Flora of Kyrgyzstan
Flora of Kazakhstan
Flora of Hungary
Flora of Austria
Flora of the Czech Republic
Flora of Poland
Flora of Germany
Flora of Italy
Medicinal plants
Garden plants of Asia
Garden plants of Europe
Shrubs