| Prunus himalaica | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification 
| |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Rosids |
| Order: | Rosales |
| Family: | Rosaceae |
| Genus: | Prunus |
| Subgenus: | Prunus subg. Cerasus |
| Species: | P. himalaica |
| Binomial name | |
| Prunus himalaica Kitam. | |
Prunus himalaica is a species of cherry native to Nepal. It is used as an ornamental elsewhere for its attractive shiny mahogany-brown bark. It prefers to grow at about 3,900 m above sea level in the Himalayas.
Description
Prunus himalaica is a small deciduous tree or shrub reaching a height of at most 5.5 m. The smooth bark is a shiny brown, with prominent horizontal lenticels, similar to the coppery-red bark of the Tibetan cherry, Prunus serrula, and similar to but darker than the brown bark of Prunus rufa. Its younger branches are more purple in color, with brownish-red pubescent coats. The leaves are 4 to 5 cm wide and 6 to 8 cm long, elliptic in shape, with their upper surfaces bright green and with some minute hairs, while the undersides are pale green with abundant brown hairs on the veins, including the 9 to 13 secondary veins. Leaves have biserrate margins, with caudate to acuminate apices and rounded bases, mounted on a 1 cm pubescent petiole. P. himalaica inflorescences are umbellate with one or two flowers attached by 3.5 to 4.5 cm pubescent pedicels. The glabrous hypanthia are about 1 cm long, and the ovate and glandular-serrate 0.4 cm sepals are often reflexed. Petals are a pale pink. Each flower has about 45 stamens.
As an ornamental
All Prunus himalaica grown as ornamentals outside their native range descend from a single individual obtained in 1965 from the Langtang Valley in Nepal by Tony Schilling.
References
- Acta Phytotax. Geobot. 15: 131 (1954)
- "Prunus himalaica Kitam". treesandshrubsonline.org. International Dendrology Society. Retrieved 28 January 2019.
- "Prunus himalaica | Himalayan cherry Trees/RHS Gardening".
| Taxon identifiers | |
|---|---|
| Prunus himalaica | |