Photo: Unknown — Public domain · source
Survives zone 4 through 8
Harvest calendar
Best planted in early spring after your last frost, or in fall before the ground freezes, depending on your climate.
The small cherry-like drupes have a sweet-tart flavor reminiscent of sour cherry and are eaten fresh, stewed, or made into pies and preserves — the flesh is pleasant but the seed kernels contain amygdalin. ⚠ Kernels/pits cyanogenic.
- Hardiness
- Zone 4–8
- Habit
- Shrub
- Edible part
- Fruit
- Ripens
- Summer–autumn
- Mature size
- Shrub 1–1.5 m; excellent in containers
- Light
- Full sun
- Soil pH
- 6.0–7.0 (near-neutral)
- Environment
- Temperate
- Native range
- Central and northern China, the Korean peninsula, and parts of Japan
- Status
- Both wild and cultivated
- Years to fruit
- 2–4 yrs
- Growth speed
- Medium growth rate
- Spacing
- 150 cm (59 in) apart — about 2.3 m² (24 sq ft) per plant
- Leaf shape
- Ovate to ovate-lanceolate, 3–7 cm long, with a rounded base, an acuminate tip, and sharply double-toothed (biserrate) margins.
- Root system
- Shallow and spreading, readily producing root suckers.
- Fruit description
- Round to slightly oval drupes about 1–1.5 cm across, ripening bright to dark red with a thin, glossy skin and a single hard stone.
- Propagation
- Seed requires 2–3 months of cold stratification and is best sown as soon as ripe, though germination can take up to 18 months; also propagated by half-ripe heel cuttings in July-August, softwood cuttings in spring, or spring layering.
- Pollination
- Varies by species — see notes
The edible parts listed above are a starting point, not a field guide. Identify a plant with certainty — ideally against a local authority — before eating any part of it, and read the full disclaimer. Spotted something wrong? Report it.
Growing guide
Fertilizing. Prefers well-drained, moisture-retentive loam with some lime in the soil — it becomes chlorotic if lime is excessive — and dislikes waterlogged ground.
How it spreads. Shallow-rooted and suckers freely if the roots are damaged or disturbed, gradually forming a dense clump.
Growing tips. Prone to dieback in exposed or windy sites; prune lightly right after flowering to remove dead wood. Like most ornamental Prunus, it is susceptible to brown rot and black knot where these diseases occur locally.
Grow journal
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