Prunus pensylvanica

{{Short description|Species of tree}} {{redirect|red cherry|other uses|Red cherry (disambiguation)}} {{Speciesbox | image = Prunus pensylvanica Cleaned.jpg | image_caption = 1913 illustration<ref>lithograph by J.N.Fitch, published in Curtis's Botanical Magazine, London, vol. 139 (series 4, volume 9): plate 8486</ref> | status = LC | status_system = IUCN3.1 | status_ref = <ref name="iucn status 19 November 2021">{{cite iucn |author=Pollard, R.P. |author2=Rhodes, L. |author3=Maxted, N. |date=2016 |title=''Prunus pensylvanica'' |volume=2016 |article-number=e.T50631663A50632509 |doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T50631663A50632509.en |access-date=19 November 2021}}</ref> | display_parents = 2 | genus = Prunus | parent = Prunus sect. Cerasus | species = pensylvanica | authority = L.f. | range_map = Prunus pensylvanica range map 1.png | range_map_caption = Natural range | synonyms = * ''Cerasus pensylvanica'' (L.f.) Loisel. * ''Padellus pensylvanica'' (L.f.) Eremin & Yushev * ''Padus pensylvanica'' (L.f.) S.Ya.Sokolov * ''Prunus cerasifolia'' S.Watson * ''Prunus pennsylvanica'' Sarg. * ''Prunus borealis'' (Michx.) Poir. * ''Prunus lanceolata'' Willd. * ''Prunus persicifolia'' Desf. * ''Prunus corymbulosa'' Rydb. * ''Prunus trichopetala'' Blankinship | synonyms_ref = <ref name=GRIN>{{GRIN|id=30064|name=Prunus pensylvanica}}</ref><ref>{{ThePlantList |authority=L.f.}}</ref> }}

'''''Prunus pensylvanica''''', also known as '''bird cherry''',<ref name=GRIN /> '''fire cherry''',<ref name=GRIN /> '''pin cherry''',<ref name=GRIN /> and '''red cherry''',<ref name=GRIN /> is a North American cherry species in the genus ''Prunus''.

== Description == ''Prunus pensylvanica'' grows as a shrub or small tree, usually with a straight trunk and a narrow, round-topped crown. It grows {{Convert|5-15|m|abbr=off}} tall and {{Convert|10-51|cm|abbr=off|frac=4}} in diameter. Trees up to {{cvt|30|m|ft}} tall have been found growing in the southern Appalachians, with the largest found on the western slopes of the Great Smoky Mountains. Its foliage is thin,<ref name=feis>{{FEIS |type=tree |genus=Prunus |species=pensylvanica |last=Anderson |first=Michelle D. |date=2004}}</ref> with leaves {{cvt|4|–|11|cm|in|frac=4}} long and {{cvt|1|-|4.5|cm|in|frac=8}} wide. Flowers occur in small groupings of five to seven with individual flowers {{cvt|1|cm|in|frac=4}} across. The fruit are drupes, ranging from {{Convert|4-8|mm|frac=8}}, each with a single seed {{cvt|4|–|6|mm|frac=16|in}} in diameter contained within a hard "stone".<ref name="FNA">{{eFloras|1|250100400|Prunus pensylvanica |family=Rosaceae |first=Joseph R. |last=Rohrer}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web | url=https://plants.usda.gov/plant-profile?symbol=PRPE2 |title = Plants Profile for Prunus pensylvanica (Pin cherry)}}</ref>

{{gallery|mode=packed |Prunus pensylvanica 5455691.jpg|Young trunk |Prunus pensylvanica 5455689.jpg|Mature trunk |Prunus pensylvanica bark.jpg|Trunk with peeling bark |Prunus pensylvanica 2 (5097486425).jpg|Blossom |Prunus pensylvanica tree.jpg|Tree in early summer |Pin Cherry (Prunus pensylvanica) - Newfoundland 2019-08-21.jpg|Specimen in summer |Черемуха пенсильванская. Раифский дендрарий. Зеленодольский р-н. РТ. Июль 2014 - panoramio.jpg|Branches with fruit |Pin-Cherry (6205408049).gif|Foliage and fruit |Prunus pensylvanica 5461506.jpg|Leaf close-up }}

== Distribution == The species is widespread across much of Canada from Newfoundland and southern Labrador to British Columbia and the southern Northwest Territories. Additionally it is very common in New England and the Great Lakes region. It can also be found in the Appalachian Mountains as far south as northern Georgia and eastern Tennessee. Scattered growth of the pin cherry also occurs in the Rocky Mountains, south to Colorado as well as in the Black Hills of South Dakota.<ref>{{BONAP|ref |genus=Prunus |species=pensylvanica}}</ref>

== Ecology == The pin cherry can regenerate by seed and sprout. Its flowers are bisexual and pollinated by insects. Seeds are dispersed by birds, small mammals, and gravity. As part of its reproductive strategy, pin cherries seeds can remain viable in the soil for many years. Seeds accumulate over prolonged periods, and soil seed banks may be viable for 50–100 years. Asexual reproduction is achieved by sprouting, and often thickets of pin cherry plants form.<ref name="FNA" />

The pin cherry is rather short lived, having a lifespan of only 20 to 40 years following a rapid maturation. Its root system is shallow, with roots tending to grow laterally. It is an important food source for many animals. Winter moose browse it in the Great Lake states and boreal forest region.<ref name="FNA" />

Though they are documented to sprout following cutting, individual pin cherry thickets are often killed if exposed to fire. Nonetheless, they have adapted as a species by the establishment of their seed banks which are protected from the most severe heat by their soil cover and fed by the nutrients in the resultant ash residue. Following a fire or other disturbance, seeds which may be dormant for years will germinate rapidly, stimulated by the altered conditions after fire. Combined with the rapid initial growth of seedlings, these characteristics enable groupings of pin cherry thickets to dominate many burned-over areas, particularly in the northern hardwood forest.{{cn|date=December 2023}}

The pin cherry serves as food for various Lepidoptera.{{cn|date=December 2023}}

== Uses ==

===Culinary=== Pin cherry currently has little commercial value, though recent interest in commercial production of pin cherry fruit has emerged. The fruit is edible and can be used in jams, jellies, and preserves.<ref>{{cite book|last=Little|first=Elbert L.|title=The Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Trees: Eastern Region|publisher=Knopf|location=New York|year=1980|isbn=0-394-50760-6|page=504}}</ref>

=== Lumber === Pin cherry wood is light, moderately soft, porous, and low in strength giving it little commercial value. In general, it is not used for lumber and is considered a noncommercial species. It occurs in abundance, however, over a wide range of sites and produces large quantities of biomass in a relatively short time. The species has been described as well adapted to intensive management and chip harvesting on short rotations for fiber and fuel.{{cn|date=December 2023}}

== References == {{Reflist}}

==External links== * {{PFAF|Prunus pensylvanica}}

pensylvanica Category:Cherries Category:Trees of Northern America Category:Flora of the Appalachian Mountains Category:Flora of the Great Lakes region Category:Flora of the United States Category:Natural history of the Great Smoky Mountains Category:Plants described in 1782 Category:Butterfly food plants