Japanese cherry (Prunus serrulata)
Description
“Pet poisonous” – Toxic parts: leaves, pits Prunus serrulata or Japanese cherry, also called hill cherry, oriental cherry or East Asian cherry, is a species of cherry native to China, Japan, and Korea, and is used for its spring cherry blossom displays and festivals. Prunus serrulata is a small deciduous tree with a short single trunk, with a dense crown reaching a height of 26-39 feet (7.9-11.9 m). The smooth bark is chestnut-brown, with prominent horizontal lenticels. The leaves are arranged alternately, simple, ovate-lanceolate, 5-13 cm long and 2.5-6.5 cm broad, with a short petiole and a serrate or doubly serrate margin. At the end of autumn, the green leaves turn yellow, red or crimson. The flowers are produced in racemose clusters of two to five together at nodes on short spurs in spring at the same time as the new leaves appear; they are white to pink, with five petals in the wild type tree. The fruit is a globose black drupe 8–10 mm diameter.
Taxonomic tree
-
Domain: Eukarya
-
-
Kingdom: Plantae
-
-
Phylum: Magnoliophyta
-
-
Class: Magnoliopsida
-
-
Order: Rosales
-
-
Family: Rosaceae
-
-
Genus: Prunus
-
-
-
-
-
-
