WILD BLACK CHERRY
Prunus serotina Ehrh.
Growth Form: Medium tree up to 75 feet tall; trunk diameter up to 3 feet; crown rounded, with rigid branches.
Bark: Thin, smooth, reddish-brown at first, becoming deeply furrowed and black.
Twigs: Slender, smooth, dark brown; leaf scars half-round, each with 3 bundle traces.
Buds: Ovoid, sharp-pointed, dark brown, smooth, up to one-fourth inch long.
Leaves: Alternate, simple; blades oblong or oval, short-pointed at the tip, tapering to the base, up to 6 inches long and about ⅓ as broad, finely toothed along the edges, green, smooth, and shiny on the upper surface, paler and smooth on the lower surface except for rusty hairs along the veins; leafstalks slender, slightly less than 1 inch long, smooth, with 1 or more reddish glands near the tip.
Flowers: Crowded in showy, drooping, elongated clusters up to 6 inches long, appearing when the leaves are partly grown, each flower about ¼ inch across, with 5 white petals.
Fruit: Fleshy, juicy, spherical, dark purple, up to ½ inch in diameter.
Wood: Light weight, hard, strong, close-grained, light reddish-brown.
Uses: Cabinets, interior finishing.