April 21, 2016

Plant Files: Dwarf Flowering Almond, Prunus glandulosa


This little shrub is putting on quite a show this year!

For those interested, here's a bit more information on it:

Scientific name: Prunus glandulosa 'Rosea plena' 
Common names: dwarf flowering almond, Chinese bush cherry, and Korean cherry.
Cold hardy in USDA zones 4-8.
Native to China and Japan; it's said to come from mountain slopes and rocky soil.
So far it's doing fine in my regular flowerbed soil.

It stays small, growing to a mature height of 4-5' tall and 3-4' wide.
(The non-dwarf variety Prunus triloba is more the size of a small tree, up to 12' tall and wide.)
Supposedly, it grows red fruit which is mildly poisonous and should not be eaten.
Perhaps you need more than one for that, because mine has never produced fruit.

It needs a spot in full sun (6-8 hours per day) and it can tolerate some drought.
Several of the online sources say that it is highly susceptible to all kinds of diseases and insect problems. For what it's worth, so far mine has not had any problems with either.
I planted it about 4 years ago.

It is gorgeous in April during bloom, then kind of just fades into the background the rest of the year, so I wouldn't necessarily put it where you need a star attraction all year long.
It's great, though, for mixed borders or smaller spaces.
I really want to start using it in flower arrangements, but it needs to grow awhile longer before I feel like there's enough for that. I don't want to leave a big gaping hole! 
Or maybe I should just plant a few more!

Do you have any experience with this plant?
Any tips?

2 comments:

  1. I can't help you with the plant but I wanted to say that your photos are lovely!

    ReplyDelete