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Chokecherry
Prunus virginiana

Appears like a large shrub cover with flowers in the spring. Bitter reddish-black berries in late summer. Entire plant except for fruit contains cyanide. Fruit eaten by wildlife. Fall color is yellow to red. Either a large deciduous shrub or a short tree, often forming dense thickets and growing up to 20' tall. Well suited for windbreaks, screens, noise barriers, patio and Japanese gardens, wildlife habitat and mass plantings for soil stabilization or erosion control. It does well in stream edges, providing thermal cover over water and stabilizing banks.

USDA symbol: PRVI

General Information

Plant TypeShrub
Height20 to 25 feet
Light ExposureSun
Soil MoistureDry
Bloom ColorWhite
Chokecherry (Chokecherry<div><em class="small">Prunus virginiana</em></div>)
Photo credit: Minnesota Wildflowers (Click to enlarge)

Tolerances

Flooding / Inundation ToleranceModerate
General Resilience9
Salt ToleranceMedium
Stress ToleranceDrought Tolerant, Fire Tolerant, General Disturbance

Pollinator Value: Very High

Bloom MonthsMay
Larval Host ofBees, Butterflies
Specific Pollinators HostedAndrena melanochroa, Satyrium titus
Pollinator BenefitInsect Pollinated, Provides Nectar, Supports Generalists

Project Planning

Project TypeBoulevard, Erosion Control, Restoration, Upland Buffer
Coefficient of Conservatism3
Herbivore SensitivityHigh
LifespanPerennial
Rate of SpreadSlow
Soil StabilizationDeep
Vegetative ReproductionClonal

Range

CountyAitkin, Anoka, Becker, Beltrami, Benton, Big Stone, Blue Earth, Brown, Carlton, Carver, Cass, Chippewa, Chisago, Clay, Clearwater, Cook, Cottonwood, Crow Wing, Dakota, Dodge, Douglas, Faribault, Fillmore, Freeborn, Goodhue, Grant, Hennepin, Houston, Hubbard, Isanti, Itasca, Jackson, Kanabec, Kandiyohi, Kittson, Koochiching, Lac qui Parle, Lake, Lake of the Woods, Le Sueur, Lincoln, Lyon, Mahnomen, Marshall, Martin, McLeod, Meeker, Mille Lacs, Morrison, Mower, Murray, Nicollet, Nobles, Norman, Olmsted, Otter Tail, Pennington, Pine, Pipestone, Polk, Pope, Ramsey, Red Lake, Redwood, Renville, Rice, Rock, Roseau, Scott, Sherburne, Sibley, St. Louis, Stearns, Steele, Stevens, Swift, Todd, Traverse, Wabasha, Wadena, Waseca, Washington, Watonwan, Wilkin, Winona, Wright, Yellow Medicine
EcoregionDriftless Area, Lake Agassiz Plain, North Central Hardwood Forests, Northern Glaciated Plains, Northern Lakes and Forests, Northern Minnesota Wetlands, Western Cornbelt Plains
Approximate Eco ProvinceEastern Broadleaf Forest, Laurentian Mixed Forest, Prairie Parkland, Tallgrass Aspen Parklands