Prunus pumila

Linnaeus

Mant. Pl. 1: 75. 1767.

Common names: Sandcherry cerisier des sables
EndemicIllustrated
Treatment appears in FNA Volume 9. Treatment on page 373. Mentioned on page 356, 360, 374.

Shrubs, sometimes suckering, 1–15 (–25) dm, not thorny. Twigs with terminal end buds, glabrous or sparsely to densely puberulent (var. susquehanae). Leaves deciduous; petiole 2–10 (–13) mm, glabrous or hairy only when young, sometimes glandular distally or on margins at bases of blades, glands 1–2; blade elliptic, oblanceolate, or obovate, 2.5–8 × 0.8–3 cm, base obtuse, cuneate, or long-attenuate, margins crenulate-serrulate to serrate in distal 1/2–2/3, teeth sharp or blunt, callus-tipped, sometimes glandular, apex short-acuminate to rounded, surfaces glabrous. Inflorescences 2–5-flowered, umbellate fascicles. Pedicels 3–19 mm, glabrous. Flowers blooming before leaf emergence; hypanthium campanulate, 1.7–3 mm, glabrous externally; sepals erect to reflexed, semicircular, 1.3–2.8 mm, margins glandular-toothed, surfaces glabrous; petals white, oblanceolate, oblong, or suborbiculate, 3–9 mm; ovaries glabrous. Drupes dark purple to nearly black, subglobose or broadly ellipsoid, 6–12 mm, glabrous; mesocarps fleshy; stones subglobose, ovoid, or fusiform, not flattened.

Distribution

V9 616-distribution-map.jpg

Man., N.B., Ont., Que., Sask., Ark., Colo., Conn., Del., Ill., Ind., Iowa, Kans., Maine, Mass., Md., Mich., Minn., Mont., N.C., N.Dak., N.H., N.J., N.Y., Nebr., Ohio, Oreg., Pa., R.I., S.Dak., Tenn., Utah, Va., Vt., W.Va., Wis., Wyo.

Discussion

Varieties 4 (4 in the flora).

Opinion has varied as to whether Prunus pumila is best treated as one variable species (for example, H. Groh and H. A. Senn 1940; H. A. Gleason 1952; J. R. Rohrer 2000) or as two, three, or four separate species (for example, W. F. Wight 1915; M. L. Fernald 1923b; P. M. Catling et al. 1999). The plants vary in stem posture, twig indument, leaf shape, fruit size and taste, pit size and shape, and ecologic preference. Even though the morphologic characters show almost continuous variation, four varieties are recognized here based largely on differences in ecologic habitat and geographic range.

Selected References

None.

Key

1 Twigs densely puberulent (10× magnification); leaf apices usually obtuse, sometimes acute or rounded, blade lengths ca. 2.6 times widths; sandy pine-oak woods or barrens with open canopy, or adjacent fields and lakeshores. Prunus pumila var. susquehanae
1 Twigs usually glabrous, sometimes sparsely puberulent; leaf apices short-acuminate, acute, or obtuse, blade lengths ca. 2.9–3.7 times widths; usually in open habitats > 2
2 Stems prostrate to decumbent; leaf blades oblanceolate, lengths ca. 3.7 times widths; stones ovoid to fusiform, 4.5–5 mm wide. Prunus pumila var. depressa
2 Stems usually erect-ascending, sometimes decumbent or sprawling; leaf blades elliptic, obovate, or oblanceolate, lengths ca. 2.9–3.3 times widths; stones subglobose to ovoid, 5–7 mm wide > 3
3 Leaf blades usually oblanceolate, lengths ca. 3.3 times widths; shores of the Great Lakes on sandy, gravelly, or rocky beaches, dunes, and interdunal flats. Prunus pumila var. pumila
3 Leaf blades elliptic, oblanceolate, or obovate, lengths ca. 2.9 times widths; sandy prairies, oak savannas, rock outcrops. Prunus pumila var. besseyi

"dm" is not declared as a valid unit of measurement for this property.

... more about "Prunus pumila"
short-acuminate;rounded +
Joseph R. Rohrer +
Linnaeus +
dark gray +, gray-brown +, reddish-brown +  and reddish +
compound +  and simple +
opposite +  and alternate +
long-attenuate +, cuneate +  and obtuse +
2.5 cm25 mm <br />0.025 m <br /> (8 cm80 mm <br />0.08 m <br />) +
obovate +, oblanceolate +  and elliptic +
0.5 cm5 mm <br />0.005 m <br /> (18 cm180 mm <br />0.18 m <br />) +
membranous +  and leathery +
0.8 cm8 mm <br />0.008 m <br /> (?) +  and 3 cm30 mm <br />0.03 m <br /> (?) +
free +  and distinct +
Sandcherry +  and cerisier des sables +
solitary +, fascicles +, 2-flowered +  and umbellate +
Man. +, N.B. +, Ont. +, Que. +, Sask. +, Ark. +, Colo. +, Conn. +, Del. +, Ill. +, Ind. +, Iowa +, Kans. +, Maine +, Mass. +, Md. +, Mich. +, Minn. +, Mont. +, N.C. +, N.Dak. +, N.H. +, N.J. +, N.Y. +, Nebr. +, Ohio +, Oreg. +, Pa. +, R.I. +, S.Dak. +, Tenn. +, Utah +, Va. +, Vt. +, W.Va. +, Wis. +  and Wyo. +
not +  and aggregated +
3 cm30 mm <br />0.03 m <br /> (8 cm80 mm <br />0.08 m <br />) +
dark purple +  and nearly black +
ellipsoid +  and subglobose +
0.6 cm6 mm <br />0.006 m <br /> (1.2 cm12 mm <br />0.012 m <br />) +
flattened +
hairy +  and glabrous +
0.4 cm4 mm <br />0.004 m <br /> (4 cm40 mm <br />0.04 m <br />) +
unisexual +  and bisexual +
not +  and aggregated +
not +  and aggregated +
not +  and aggregated +
persistent +  and deciduous +
campanulate +
0.17 cm1.7 mm <br />0.0017 m <br /> (0.3 cm3 mm <br />0.003 m <br />) +
umbellate +  and 2-5-flowered +
crassinucellate +
deciduous +
glandular-toothed +
crenulate-serrulate to serrate +
inferior +  and superior +
biseriate +  and clustered +
collateral +  and apical +
0.3 cm3 mm <br />0.003 m <br /> (1.9 cm19 mm <br />0.019 m <br />) +
0 (?) +  and 4 (?) +
free +  and distinct +
suborbiculate;oblong;suborbiculate;oblong;oblanceolate +
0.3 cm3 mm <br />0.003 m <br /> (0.9 cm9 mm <br />0.009 m <br />) +
1 cm10 mm <br />0.01 m <br /> (1.3 cm13 mm <br />0.013 m <br />) +
hairy +  and glabrous +
0.2 cm2 mm <br />0.002 m <br /> (1 cm10 mm <br />0.01 m <br />) +
adnate +, free +, connate +  and distinct +
not arillate +
free +  and distinct +
erect +  and reflexed +
obovate +, lanceolate +, ovate-elliptic +, oblong +, ovate +, semicircular +  and triangular +
0.13 cm1.3 mm <br />0.0013 m <br /> (0.28 cm2.8 mm <br />0.0028 m <br />) +
Endemic +  and Illustrated +
free +  and distinct +
branched +  and simple +
1 +  and 20 +
linear;lanceolate +
not flattened +, fusiform +, ovoid +  and subglobose +
deciduous +
distinct +
basal +, lateral +, subterminal +  and terminal +
not elongate +
Amygdalus +, Armeniaca +, Cerasus +, Lauro-cerasus +, Padus +  and Persica +
Prunus pumila +
species +
callus-tipped +
blunt +  and sharp +
inconspicuous +
glabrous or +  and sparsely densely puberulent +
shrub +  and suckering +
hairy +  and glabrous +