Pin
Cherry
(Prunus
pensylvanica L. f.)
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Pin
cherry, also known as wild red cherry, fire cherry and bird cherry,
commonly develops in clearings, along fence rows and along roadsides
in the mountains.
The leaves are oblong, measuring 3 to 5 inches long and 3/4 to
1 1/4 inches in width. The margins are finely and sharply toothed
and rather thin. The leaves are lustrous yellowish-green on both
surfaces but are slightly paler on the underside.
The fruits are light red drupes about 1/4 inch in diameter, with
a thin, very sour flesh. They are attached in small, lateral,
umbel-like clusters and ripen during July and August.
The bark of the young trunks and branches is lustrous and bright
reddish-brown. It is conspicuously marked with horizon tally elongated
lenticels (small openings, usually surrounded by rough, corky
tissue in the bark of a twig) and frequently peels off in horizontal
strips. The green inner bark is pungent and very bitter.
The tree is short-lived and small, occasionally reaching a height
of 30 feet and a diameter of up to 1 foot. The wood has little
commercial value. Many species of wild birds, including the wild
grouse, eat the fruits. Almost all of its seeds are spread by
birds. |
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