Chokecherry

[Mark Mayfield]

Hi Keith,

I was looking at this today and thought I would summarize. First, that's an interesting story about the plums and cherries from your youth. I too have memories, but we had a small fruit orchard with plums my Dad planted that I had to take care of growing up. They were cultivated species but quite good. Kansas has a few different species of plums, especially down in that area where you grew up. 

About the chokecherry and it's possible history and variation in Kansas: When you look at the key for north american Prunus (includes both the cherries and the plums), the very first choice one always makes is between those species with hanging racemes (like chokecherry) vs. those with clusters in the leaf axils (corymbs). The raceme is just a long central axis with the flowers/fruits arranged in a spiral around the axis. In Kansas, there are two native species that have racemes: one is the black cherry (Prunus serotina), which grows mostly from about Topeka eastward and the other is chokecherry, and it is native from coast to coast, but quite variable in ripe fruit color and leaf shape and size. In my experience, the chokecherries of the east are characteristically black, whereas those of the west (rockies and west) have red fruits. The ones from western Kansas might be expected to have various colors as this is in the zone where the transition is occurring. There is also the complicating factor that the WPA planted chokecherries in the wind break project, possibly introducing extraneous genotypes. Thus, while it's quite easy to identify a chokecherry (vs. a plum or other cherries), you may expect them to have a surprising amount of variability in the fruit color and leaf size, especially in Norton Co. 

When you refer to Sandhill Plum, I think you may be talking about Prunus angustifolia, a clonal tree that is also often referred to as Chickasa Plum. That plant grows on sandier soils whereas the American Plum might inhabit a richer, deeper soil of the bottoms.  There are others in Kansas and you may have also encountered one called Hog or Creek Plum (Prunus rivularis). 

Mark H. Mayfield
Division of Biology
1717 Claflin Rd. 
Manhattan, Kansas 66506-4900
785-532-2795 (voice)

Office: 304 Bushnell Hall

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From: Keith VanSkike <kv...@ksu.edu>
Sent: Friday, July 14, 2023 16:13
To: Mark Mayfield <mark...@ksu.edu>
Subject: Re: Re:

 

So I thought choke cherry was a dark purple berry and I had some people say they already had made some jam from some harvest. so these are just a little later than some??. Darn I thought I had it, but again I have some plum in the same garden habitat where I  had pick ripe and I see some more that are green. Sand hill and american plum are a sentimental bushes as my Gma would walk the rural lane to mail box and harvest both as she walked and always made jam. They lived inside the curve on Ks side where the Ark river flowed into Oklahoma. SE KS. and we actually did go over the river and through the woods to Gma place.Lot of timber down there. She could pick asparagus in early feb some years. Thanks again,KPVan

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From: Mark Mayfield <mark...@ksu.edu>
Sent: Friday, July 14, 2023 4:02 PM
To: Keith VanSkike <kv...@ksu.edu>
Subject: Re:

 

Hi Keith,

That’s chokecherry (Prunus virginiana). It was spread around by the early shelter belt program. 

Mark

Mark H Mayfield

Division of Biology

Kansas State University

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From: Keith VanSkike <kv...@ksu.edu>
Sent: Friday, July 14, 2023 9:26:24 AM
To: Mark Mayfield <mark...@ksu.edu>
Subject:

 

A man had come into the office in Hoxie. Lived in a small farmstead outside the town. He had just purchased this farm earlier in this year and noticed these bushes in a small group about 10 and about 6 ft high and NOT part of a windbreak row. they were growing in a low lying slew or ditch like you would see sandhill plum grow in a ditch. Anyway the first picture he sent just had a terminal  buds and a few berries and I said looks like sandhill plum. then I saw the sample this morning as I am in hoxie this a.m. and doesnt really look like what my cultivated habitat planting are in my property. Anyay what do you think?? Keith.

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