Prunus cerasoides | |
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Indian white-eye in a wild Himalayan cherry | |
Scientific classification ![]() | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Clade: | Angiosperms |
Clade: | Eudicots |
Clade: | Rosids |
Order: | Rosales |
Family: | Rosaceae |
Genus: | Prunus |
Subgenus: | Prunus subg. Cerasus |
Species: | P. cerasoides |
Binomial name | |
Prunus cerasoides | |
Synonyms [3] | |
List
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Prunus cerasoides, commonly known as the wild Himalayan cherry,sour cherry [4] or pahhiya is a species of deciduous cherry tree in the family Rosaceae.
Its range extends in the Himalayas from Himachal Pradesh in north-central India, to south-western China, Burma and Thailand. In India the tree is widely revered in the Himalayan state of Uttarakhand. The tree is found in temperate forest from 1,200–2,400 metres (3,900–7,900 ft) in elevation and extends to tropical highlands of Southeast Asia. [5] [6]
Prunus cerasoides is a tree which grows up to 30 metres (98 ft) in height. It has glossy, ringed bark. When the tree is not in flower, it is characterised by glossy, ringed bark and long, dentate stipules.[ citation needed ]
The tree flowers twice a year, during autumn and spring. First flowering blooms between the months of January to April and second flowering blooms between September to November. [7] Flowers are hermaphroditic and are pinkish white in color. It has ovoid yellow fruit that turns red as it ripens.[ citation needed ]
Prunus cerasoides thrives in well-drained and moisture-retentive loamy soil, in an open, sunny, and sheltered location.[ citation needed ]
P. cerasoides, like most members of the genus Prunus , is shallow rooted and is likely to produce suckers if the root is damaged. It is likely to become chlorotic if too much lime is present. It is known to be susceptible to honey fungus.[ citation needed ]
The seed requires two to three months cold stratification and is best sown in a cold frame as early in winter as possible. The seed grows rather slowly and can sometimes take about 18 months to germinate depending on the conditions.[ citation needed ]
In India, Prunus cerasoides is known in Hindi as padam, pajja, pahhiya or padmakashtha has cultural and religious significance. [8] [9] Among Hindus in Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand, it is considered sacred and associated with Vishnu and Shiva. [10] [11] [12] During Maha Shivaratri, the leaves are used to make a wreath with wild citrus fruits, which is hung at the prayer altar.
In Hindi and Sanskrit it is known as padma, padmakh, pajja, pahhiya, padmakashtha, charu, hima, kaidra, padmagandi. In Nepali it is known as paiyu. In Khasi and Mizo languages it is known as dieng kaditusoo and tlaizawng. [13]
Prunus cerasoides cherry blossom festivals are held in India during the months of October–November. [14] Shillong is notable for its annual prunus cerasoides cherry blossom festival held during the month of November. [15] [16]
Religious Significance in Uttarakhand
The tree is referred to as “पंय्यां” in the Himalayan State of Uttarakhand, India and is regarded as a holy tree by various groups in both the Garhwal and Kumaon region. The tree is also worshipped exclusively by shilpkars or doms in certain regions of the state.
Cerasoides is among the few trees in the region that remain blooming at the height of winters during, December and January and hence is worshipped for its resilience. The tree is traditionally never chopped down in Uttarakhand because of it religious significance, only branches can be cut if there arises a requirement of its leaves, flowers or wood.
The Cerasoides is regarded as the tree of the gods in Uttarakhand. Acharya Manu notes "when all the trees drop their leaves during the harsh winter season, flowers grow in the leaves of the tree." The use of its wood in the wedding hall symbolizes strength and happiness in the new life of the bride and groom.[ citation needed ]
Its stalk is also used one way or another in Yajnopaveet, Jagar and Baisi. Among the instruments played in religious programs, Lukudi made of wood of Paiyan tree is considered to be the most sacred. Apart from this, the garlands used in homes during the house warming yajns, yagyopaveet etc. are also made from paiyan leaves.
The leaves are also used as incense. [17] [18] Village weddings are considered incomplete without having been decorated with the branches and leaves from the tree. Among the instruments played in religious ceremonies, lukudi made from the wood of pahhiya tree is considered to be the most sacred. [10]
The fruits and the leaves give a dark green dye. Seeds can be used in the manufacture of necklaces.
The wood is hard, strong, durable and aromatic, and branches are used as walking sticks.
A cherry is the fruit of many plants of the genus Prunus, and is a fleshy drupe.
Prunus is a genus of trees and shrubs in the flowering plant family Rosaceae that includes plums, cherries, peaches, nectarines, apricots, and almonds. The genus has a cosmopolitan distribution, being native to the North American temperate regions, the neotropics of South America, and temperate and tropical regions of Asia and Africa, There are 340 accepted species. Many members of the genus are widely cultivated for their fruit and for decorative purposes. Prunus fruit are drupes, or stone fruits. The fleshy mesocarp surrounding the endocarp is edible while the endocarp itself forms a hard, inedible shell called the pyrena. This shell encloses the seed, which is edible in some species, but poisonous in many others. Besides being eaten off the hand, most Prunus fruit are also commonly used in processing, such as jam production, canning, drying, and the seeds for roasting.
Prunus cerasus is a species of Prunus in the subgenus Cerasus (cherries), native to much of Europe, North Africa and West Asia. It is closely related to the sweet cherry, but has a fruit that is more acidic. Its sour pulp is edible.
The cherry blossom, or sakura, is the flower of trees in Prunus subgenus Cerasus. "Sakura" usually refers to flowers of ornamental cherry trees, such as cultivars of Prunus serrulata, not trees grown for their fruit. Cherry blossoms have been described as having a vanilla-like smell, which is mainly attributed to coumarin.
Prunus serrulata or Japanese cherry is a species of cherry tree that grows naturally in Japan, China, Korea, and Vietnam, and it also refers to a cultivar produced from Prunus speciosa, a cherry tree endemic in Japan. Historically, the Japanese have developed many cultivars by selective breeding of cherry trees, which are produced by the complicated crossing of several wild species, and they are used for ornamental purposes all over the world. Of these, the cultivars produced by complex interspecific hybrids based on the Oshima cherry are also known as the Cerasus Sato-zakura Group.
Prunus japonica, also called Japanese bush cherry, Oriental bush cherry, or Korean bush cherry is a shrub species in the genus Prunus that is widely cultivated for ornamental use. Its native range extends from Central China through to the Korean peninsula.
Prunus ilicifolia is native to the chaparral areas of coastal California, Baja California, and Baja California Sur. as well as the desert chaparral areas of the Mojave desert.
Prunus pensylvanica, also known as bird cherry, fire cherry, pin cherry, and red cherry, is a North American cherry species in the genus Prunus.
Prunus × yedoensis is a hybrid cherry tree between Prunus speciosa as father plant and Prunus pendula f. ascendens as mother. It is a hybrid born in Japan and one of its cultivars, Prunus × yedoensis 'Somei-yoshino' or Yoshino cherry, is one of the most popular and widely planted cherry cultivars in temperate regions around the world today. 'Somei-yoshino' is a clone from a single tree, and has been propagated by grafting all over the world. 'Somei-yoshino' inherits Edo higan's quality of blooming before the leaves unfold and it growing into a large-sized tree. It also inherits the characteristics of the Oshima cherry, which grows rapidly and has white flowers. These characteristics are favored and have become one of the most popular cultivars of cherry trees.
Prunus itosakura is a wild species of cherry trees native to Japan, and is also the name given to the cultivars derived from this species. Itosakura means thread cherry, and appeared in historical documents from the Heian period in Japan. The scientific name for the hybrid between this species and Prunus incisa is Prunus × subhirtella. Historically, the Japanese have produced many cultivars from this wild species, and they are also called weeping cherry, autumn cherry, or winter-flowering cherry, because of the characteristics of each cultivar.
Prunus fruticosa, the European dwarf cherry, dwarf cherry, Mongolian cherry or steppe cherry is a deciduous, xerophytic, winter-hardy, cherry-bearing shrub. It is also called ground cherry and European ground cherry, but is not to be confused with plants in the distinct "Groundcherry" genus of Physalis.
Prunus jamasakura, the Japanese mountain cherry, is a species of flowering plant in the family Rosaceae that is endemic to Japan.
Prunus campanulata is a species of cherry native to Japan, Taiwan, southern and eastern China, and Vietnam. It is a large shrub or small tree, growing 3–8 m (10–26 ft) tall. It is widely grown as an ornamental tree, and a symbol of Nago in the Ryukyu Islands of Japan. It is variously known in English as the Taiwan cherry, Formosan cherry, or bellflower cherry. It was described in 1883 by Carl Johann Maximowicz.
Prunus tomentosa is a species of Prunus native to northern and western China, Korea, Mongolia, and possibly northern India. Common names for Prunus tomentosa include Nanjing cherry, Korean cherry, Manchu cherry, downy cherry, Shanghai cherry, Ando cherry, mountain cherry, Chinese bush cherry, and Chinese dwarf cherry.
Prunus maximowiczii, known as Korean cherry, Korean mountain cherry, or Miyama cherry, is a small, fruiting cherry tree that can be found growing wild in northeastern Asia and Eurasia.
Prunus avium, commonly called wild cherry, sweet cherry or gean is a species of cherry, a flowering plant in the rose family, Rosaceae. It is native to Europe, Anatolia, Maghreb, and Western Asia, from the British Isles south to Morocco and Tunisia, north to the Trondheimsfjord region in Norway and east to the Caucasus and northern Iran, with a small isolated population in the western Himalaya. The species is widely cultivated in other regions and has become naturalized in North America, New Zealand and Australia.
Prunus 'Kanzan' is a flowering cherry cultivar. It was developed in the Edo period in Japan as a result of multiple interspecific hybrids based on the Oshima cherry.
Prunus cornuta, the Himalayan bird cherry, is a species of bird cherry native to the foothills of the Himalayas, including China and the countries of the Indian subcontinent. A medium-sized tree, it can reach 18 m. It is used for a rootstock for sweet cherries in India. Its specific epithet references the "horned" deformation of the fruit seen when a tree is afflicted with the fungal disease pocket plum gall, ascribed to the species Taphrina padi.
Prunus subg. Cerasus is a subgenus of Prunus. Species of the subgenus have a single winter bud per axil. The flowers are usually in small corymbs or umbels of several together, but some species have short racemes. The fruit is a drupe and has no obvious groove along the side. The subgenus is native to the temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere, with two species in North America, four in Europe, two in North Africa, and the remainder in Asia.
In the present day, ornamental cherry blossom trees are distributed and cultivated worldwide. While flowering cherry trees were historically present in Europe, North America, and China, the practice of cultivating ornamental cherry trees was centered in Japan, and many of the cultivars planted worldwide, such as that of Prunus × yedoensis, have been developed from Japanese hybrids.