PlantFiles: Wild Black Cherry
Prunus serotina

Invaluable wildlife plant, in addition to feeding a myriad of animals over 70 species of birds eat black cherries. Beautiful bark, flowers and foliage. We have many growing on overgrown parts of our property, so we clear the briars and honeysuckles off of them and prune them up nicely. Last year (2007) we had an April 8 hard freeze which killed the flowers on most of the trees, and I didn't see a single cherry anywhere in this part of Western Arkansas.

If I didn't have horses, I would probably not dislike this native Virginia tree as I do. They are EVERYWHERE here, & the fact that the wilted leaves, when eaten, & which blow down easily during summer storms, can sicken & kill livestock within a very short period of time, makes it difficult for me to feel positive about it.

That said, the small slightly bitter cherries are wildlife magnets, & during the summer as they ripen, the trees here are not only full of a vast variety of birds (Red-Bellied Woodpeckers & Catbirds in most abundance), but the fox & skunk scat I find about is always filled with wild cherry pits.

I also recall from my childhood, my father picking the tiny black fully-ripe cherries & steeping them in gin & vodka for fruity cocktails.

Native to this zone, this tree is common here. As others have noted, it is brittle and attracts all sorts of pests. I wouldn't erradicate them, but I wouldn't plant one either.

I love the bark on this tree. Sometimes it looks almost black. It isn't common in St. Paul but I see it occaisionally.

Although this is a good tree for wildlife and makes wonderful firewood and furniture, I dislike it because I get literally thousands of seedlings each spring to pull out or spray with herbicide. Do not locate near your flower beds or vegetable garden for this reason. In the woods, the seedlings can choke out other types of vegetation, but if there is dense shade, most of them will die off naturally.

These trees are very common in my area.I have alot of them on my property.They are fast growing and somewhat weedy.These trees get very tall and slender.The wood although pretty,is very brittle.Even in mild storms the trunks can break right in the middle of the tree.

This tree can get quite large...up to 80'. My aunt had one that was at least that tall, a huge tree that produced vast amounts of fruit.

The wood is valuable as lumber and furniture, but ,as stated above, the tent caterpillars are kind of gross. Be sure to plant away from walkways and gutters and give it plenty of room.

I like this tree...it provides food for wildlife and is a nice shade tree when fully grown. The berries make a nice jelly.

The branches give off a distinct smell when broken and young growth is smooth and reddish.

Listed a good plant for fall/winter color in florida.
Pops up in old fields and usually wet disturbed sites.

My parents had one of these trees and I always gave it wide berth because of the tent caterpillars and fall webworms, which I could not stand. My dad always said that it was a dirty tree, though he said that wild cherry lumber is valuable for making furniture.

Roots of this tree contain cyanide that is mildly poisonous to other types of plants, similar to juglone from black walnut. Tree is favorite of Eastern tent caterpillar.

The cherry tree is a widely favored species. From the beautiful spring blossoms to the desirable wood of this species is the more favorable member of the rose family. The bark of this tree is also used in cough syrups. (Apples and plums also belong to the rose family.)

The Wild Black Cherry (Prunus serotina) is not so favorable to cattle and dairy farmers because when the leaves fall from the tree and decomposes, it produces glucose and cyanic acid which is highly toxic to cattle and some other farm animals.

What to look for: The tree is tall with an oblong elliptical crown. Leaves are finely saw-toothed, shiny dark green above, lighter below with 1 or 2 dark red glands at the base..

Habitat: Hardwood forests with moist soils. Found sometimes in stands.

Size: 60 - 80 feet tall. Leaves 2 - 6 inches long.