Cherry - Bird (Prunus padus)

Our range of Wild Cherry bare root plants (Prunus padus)

Wild Cherry grows fast from seed so we have several sizes available all bare root seedlings (or whips) which were planted from seed in spring and are sold during the following November to April winter months.  All these plants are grown by us in Herefordshire.

We always have several batches of seed for this species including UK provenance and the highest quality imported seed so if the seed provenance is important to you please give us a call so that we can allocate your chosen batch.

In addition we have cell grown Wild Cherry which are grown by one of the UK's best specialist growers and these are idea for woodland creation or amenity planting but can also be used for domestic planting schemes and these plants are available all year round.

All our Wild Cherry plants are suitable as hedging plants or can be allowed to grow as full size trees.

You can read more about the specifications we offer on the tab just below the pricing table - to the right of this product description.

Bird Cherry (Prunus padus) Summary

Bird Cherry is a heavily scented belter of a tree when its long racemes (clustered along stalks – like Wisteria) of bee friendly white flowers appear in late April/May, making it quite a late-flowerer and useful due to that to extend the flowering season after Blackthorn and Hawthorn.  Bitter black fruits follow in autumn along with striking yellow/bronze foliage.

It’s a rounded medium sized tree good in woodlands, parks and gardens and due to its pollution tolerance it’s also good in highway schemes in all soils including wetter soils (unusual for a flowering cherry tree) but is not suited to waterlogged soils.  It likes to grow in sunlight and is one of the pioneer species of trees (see blog for more information on pioneer trees).

Leaves, flowers and fruits

The leaves of Bird Cherry are oval, 6-10cm long, with a pointed tip and fine serrations along the edges.  The leaves can be poisonous to livestock even if ingested in small amounts.

The flowers are highly scented (of almond) and are held in long racemes which means that the clusters of flowers are held along short stalks (like a Wisteria) and this gives a spectacular appearance which makes this tree suitable for gardens and surburban road planting schemes as much as any of the cultivated flowering cherry trees but with the advantages of being a true native.

The cherry fruits are black and bitter – suitable only for birds (especially blackbirds and song thrushes) and small mammals.

Eventual height and growth rate

A small to medium sized tree reaching 10-20m and with an average growth rate of about 40cm pa when young.

This section gives definitions on the specifications of plants that we sell.  We are specialists in field grown (or bare root) plants which are grown in two ways.  The majority are grown from seed, some are ready within one growing season (seedlings or 1+0's) and some species require two growing seasons (1u1's).  In addition to growing from seed we also grow from small plants or cuttings (transplants) which are much more widely spaced (taking more land, more irrigation water, fertilisers and labour).  There are only a handful of bare root wholesale nurseries in the UK and of those even fewer grow transplants but Ray Jenkins has many years' experience of transplanting so we grow these in large volumes.  Ray has written this blog about the benefits of bare root plants and how they are grown and another blog which gives further detail on bare root specifications.

The detailed specifications are shown below.  If you are in doubt about what specification to use please email us on enquiries@rjtreesandhedging.co.uk with a description of the project (and photos if appropriate) and we will advise you.

1+0 - field grown in one season from seed, known as a seedling (sometimes called a whip), generally a slender single stem plant.   These are the cheapest specification and are particularly suitable for planting where weed competition will be less intense, soil is shallow or on exposed windy sites.  Gives a high root to shoot ratio and minimal plant "check".

2+0 - a 2 year seedling, field grown from seed in the same seed bed in two growing seasons where the species cannot be grown to a saleable plant from seed in one season

1U1 - 2 year old plant called an undercut, field grown for two seasons in the same seed bed and undercut by machine (a sharp blade cutting the roots under the soil level) after the first year to develop the root structure. We do this with several species which take 2 years to develop (eg oak, beech, hornbeam)

1+1 - 2 year old plant (transplant) grown from seed in the first year and then transplanted into a different area of the field and spaced out for the second growing season - a robust plant with a larger and more robust root system than seedling or undercut plant which will enable it to better withstand drought and weed competition. Often the best choice and the staple norm for farm hedging and this specification is a requirement of the Countryside Stewardship Grant

1+2- a 3 year old plant, two years field growing in the seedbed and then transplanted (and spaced out) for a further two growing seasons giving a tall, stocky, bushy plant

2+1- a 3 year old plant, two years field growing in the seedbed and then transplanted (and spaced out) for a further growing season, giving a strong bushy plant

3+1 - as above but field grown for a further growing season for more height and a very bushy plant

1+3- 4 year old, one year field growing in the seed beds and then transplanted (and spaced out) for three years, giving a very strong, bushy plant

2+2- 4 year old, two years field growing in the seed beds and then transplanted (and spaced out) for a further two years - a very mature plant suited to certain species like beech and hornbeam where we can offer almost instant hedging

and some that are a bit different.....

P9 - a plant grown in a greenhouse or polytunnel in a 9cm pot (for holly which germinates poorly in the field)

Cell grown - a plant grown in small deep cells (like a small yogurt pot) and then lifted out of those for transportation. Commonly used in forestry and large hedging projects.  Very high quality plants with excellent success rate.  See our blog on the benefits of cell grown plants.

C+1 or C+2 - a 3 or 4 year old plant initally started as hardwood cuttings grown on for a year as cell grown plants and then lined out in fields to grow on for a further 1 or 2 years (a technique used for Cherry Laurel)

0/1 - a hardwood cutting, then field grown for one season (for example for white willow, black poplar and osier)