Prunus pumila - (image 1 of 6)
Taxonomy
Family: Rosaceae
Habitat
Common on dunes facing Lake Michigan, occasionally further inland in sandy prairies. Also in dry to mesic prairies.
Associates
In dry prairies with Andropogon scoparius, Erynium yuccifolium, Helianthus mollis, Opuntia humifusa, Parthenium integrifolium.
Distribution
Quebec west to Manitoba, ND, WY, south NJ, PA, KY, TN to CO
Morphology
Small deciduous shrub, usually multi-stemmed and irregularly shaped. Leaves alternate, simple, narrowly oblanceolate to obovate, glabrous, teeth reduced or absent below the middle, widest above the middle. Stems reddish-gray with lighter horizontal lenticels. Flowers white, less than 1" across; sepals glabrous; pedicels less than .5" long. Fruit an oval drupe, to .5" in diameter, almost black, astringent.
Notes
Flowers mid April to late June
Wetland indicator: Upland
These pictures are of var. pumila, which occurs along the shores of the Great Lakes and some areas inland. Several other recognized varieties exist and are separated based on growth habit and leaf shape. The fruit is edible but...I couldn't eat one.
References
Gleason, Henry A. and A. Cronquist. 1991. Manual of Vascular Plants of Northeastern United States and Adjacent Canada. Second Ed.
The New York Botanical Garden. Bronx, NY.
Swink, F. and G. Wilhelm. 1994. Plants of the Chicago Region.
Indiana Academy of Science. The Morton Arboretum. Lisle, Illinois.
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Michael Hough © 2005 |