Prunus buergeriana | |
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Flowers and foliage | |
Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Clade: | Angiosperms |
Clade: | Eudicots |
Clade: | Rosids |
Order: | Rosales |
Family: | Rosaceae |
Genus: | Prunus |
Subgenus: | Prunus subg. Padus |
Species: | P. buergeriana
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Binomial name | |
Prunus buergeriana | |
Synonyms | |
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Prunus buergeriana,[1] in Japanese イヌザクラ (inu-zakura), meaning dog cherry, is a species of bird cherry native to Japan, Korea, Taiwan, China, northeast India (Sikkim), and Bhutan. In China it prefers to grow on mountain slopes at 1000 to 3400 m above sea level.[2] Its closest relative is Prunus perulata, from which it is morphologically and genetically distinct.[3]
Prunus buergeriana individuals usually reach a height of 6–12 metres (20–39 ft). The small flowers are borne on a raceme.[2] The fruit ripen from green through red to black.
Considered an unlovely tree in Japan,[4] the dog cherry is used as a simile in Japanese haiku for unflattering comparisons with dogs; in these the paltry raceme resembles the tail of a whipped cur, or the spotted bark the markings of a starving mongrel.[4]