Prunus spinosa Prunus spinosa Prunus spinosa, called blackthorn or sloe, is a species of flowering plant in the rose family Rosaceae. It is native to Europe, western Asia, and locally in northwest Africa. It is also locally naturalised in New Zealand, Tasmania and eastern North America. "Prunus spinosa" is a large deciduous shrub or small tree growing to tall, with blackish bark and dense, stiff, spiny branches. The leaves are oval, long and broad, with a serrated margin. The flowers are about in diameter, with five creamy-white petals; they are produced shortly before the leaves in early spring, and are hermaphroditic and
Prunus pseudocerasus has been cultivated for its edible (if tart) fruit for around 2000 years. In Japan it is favored as an ornamental tree for its tendency to bloom, flowers before leaves, earlier than the Japanese cherry "Prunus serrulata". A tetraploid with 2n=32 chromosomes, it is used as rootstock for other flowering cherries. It is the parent of a number of hybrid cultivars. It is resistant to the fungal disease cherry leaf spot. Prunus pseudocerasus Prunus pseudocerasus or Prunus pseudo-cerasus, the Chinese sour cherry or just Chinese cherry, is a species of cherry native to China and is used worldwide as an