Wild Cherry
Prunus avium
Also known as
Gean, Mazzard, Bird Cherry, Cheshire Merry Tree, Crab Cherry, Hagberry, Merry Tree, Suffolk Merries, Sweet Cherry, Mazzard Cherry, Gean Cherry, Cherry
Prunus avium, blossom, Metylovická pahorkatina 03 by Daniel Baránek (CC BY-SA 3.0)
Full Sun
Moderate care
Moderate watering
Frost Hardy
H6
RHS hardiness
-20°C
Minimum temperature
Expected size
Height | Spread | |
|---|---|---|
20m | Max | 10m |
8m | Min | 8m |
25 years to reach maturity
Fruiting
-
spring
-
summer
-
autumn
-
winter
Fruit are hand-picked when ripe.
More images of Wild Cherry
Wild Cherry Overview
Tall and attractive, the Wild Cherry, Prunus avium, is a deciduous tree that speaks to almost all the senses with its fragrant white-pink flowers in spring, its orange, pink & red leaf-jacket in autumn and the small tasteful deep-red fruits that are known across the world. It has culinary & medicinal applications. It is ornamentally cultivated as a flowering tree or grown for the delicious fruit. This tree can survive in a wide range of habitats and is a beautiful addition to an informal garden.
Common problems with Wild Cherry
Wild Cherry Companion Plants
Other Cherry trees will help with better pollination and fruitset.
How to propagate Wild Cherry
Cuttings
Cuttings of half-ripe wood with a heel, winter in a frame. Softwood cuttings from strongly growing plants in spring to early summer in a frame.
Seed
Sowing time - Winter. Germination time - Seed needs 3 months of cold to break dormancy period and will sprout in Spring.
Suckers
They produce quite a lot of suckers and can form thickets, especially if the main trunk is felled.
Grafting
Propagation is from grafting or from seeds.
Special features of Wild Cherry
Autumn colour
The leaves turn orange, pink or red before falling.
Attracts useful insects
Attracts insects such as bees during blossom time.
Attracts birds
The fruit are readily eaten by numerous kinds of birds.
Repels harmful insects
The tree exudes a gum from wounds in the bark, by which it seals the wounds to exclude insects and fungal infections.
Attractive flowers
Hedge plant
Other uses of Wild Cherry
Culinary
Medicinal
Fruit stalks are astringent, diuretic and tonic. A decoction is used in the treatment of cystitis, oedema, bronchial complaints, looseness of the bowels and anaemia, amongst other treatments.
Edible
Fruit is eaten fresh, in tarts, as a dessert, frozen, candied, pickled, in sweet & sour dishes or preserved in jams, liqueurs & syrups. Otherwise eaten by birds, animals & various insects.
Poisonous to Pets
If your pet likes to nibble your plants, check our collection to make sure what they're eating isn't doing them any harm.
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Native British Trees
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