Prunus pensylvanica L.f.
Bird cherry, fire cherry, pin cherry
Bird cherry, so-called because of its popularity with some birds, is native to North America.
Plants: Deciduous shrubs or small trees, 16–49′ tall ⨉ 4–20″ around (5–15 m ⨉ 10–51 cm). Reddish brown bark has horizontal bands of orange-colored lenticels. They live a relatively short time, 20-40 years, but their fast growth makes them good early colonizers after fires.
Leaves: Simple, alternate, elliptic to oblong, serrated, 1½–4 ⨉ ⅜–1¾″ (4–11 ⨉ 1–4.5 cm), on petioles ½–¾″ (1.3–1.9 cm) long.
Flowers: Umbels of five to seven white flowers, each ⅜–⅝″ (1.2–1.6 cm) around, with five sepals. Petals are round to egg-shaped. Flowers appear from late March to early July.
Fruits: Shiny red drupes are ⅛–¼″ (4–8 mm) around, ripening from July to September. Each cherry contains a hard pit which contains a single seed.
Habitats: Dry to moist clearings, open woods, woodland edges and disturbed sites. It inhabits infertile rocky ledges, sandy plains, moist loamy soils, and rich loams.
Edibility: Edible cooked, and used in jams and preserves. Trees produce a lot of fruit.
Online References:
5/6/2021 · Tarbox Preserve, Topsham, Maine · ≈ 4½ × 3½″ (11 × 9.2 cm) 
ID is uncertain 
5/15/2016 · Mt. Watatic, Ashby, Massachusetts · ≈ 3½ × 2½″ (8.9 × 7.2 cm) 
8/2/2008 · Bar Harbor, Maine · ≈ 6 × 4″ (15 × 10 cm) ID is uncertain 
5/19/2016 · Bemis Road Trails, Pepperell, Massachusetts 
5/7/2013 · J. Harry Rich Dirt Road, Groton, Massachusetts · ≈ 7 × 4½″ (18 × 12 cm) 
5/19/2016 · Bemis Road Trails, Pepperell, Massachusetts 
5/7/2013 · J. Harry Rich Dirt Road, Groton, Massachusetts · ≈ 5 × 4″ (13 × 10 cm) 
5/19/2016 · Bemis Road Trails, Pepperell, Massachusetts 
5/12/2025 · Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens, Boothbay, Maine · ≈ 6 × 3½″ (14 × 9.6 cm) 
8/2/2008 · Bar Harbor, Maine · ≈ 6 × 4″ (15 × 10 cm) ID is uncertain 
5/7/2013 · J. Harry Rich Dirt Road, Groton, Massachusetts · ≈ 4½ × 4″ (11 × 10 cm) 
6/21/2025 · Hawk Mountain, Waterford, Maine · ≈ 7 × 4½″ (18 × 12 cm) 
6/21/2025 · Hawk Mountain, Waterford, Maine · ≈ 11 × 7″ (27 × 18 cm) 
| Kingdom | Plantae | Plants, but not fungi, lichens, or algae (from Stearn's Botanical Latin) |
| Subkingdom | Tracheobionta | Vascular plants—plants with a “circulatory system” for delivering water and nutrients |
| Division | Magnoliophyta | Flowering plants, also known as angiosperms |
| Class | Magnoliopsida | Dicotyledons—plants with two initial seed leaves |
| Subclass | Rosidae | Roses, legumes, proteas, dogwoods, hydrangeas, mistletoes, euphorbias, grapes, many more |
| Order | Rosales | Rose family and eight others |
| Family | Rosaceae | Includes apples, apricots, plums, cherries, peaches, pears, raspberries, strawberries, almonds, roses, meadowsweets, photinias, firethorns, rowans, and hawthorns; many others |
| Genus | Prunus | Includes plums, cherries, peaches, apricots, and almonds |
| Species | pensylvanica | Of or from Pennsylvania |
Prunus pensylvanica description by Thomas H. Kent, not updated.
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