Flora of New Zealand Series

Japanese hill cherry

Deciduous, spreading to erect tree, 4-12-(15) m high when mature, not armed; trunk tall. Lf petiole (14)-20-32-(40) mm long, glabrous or occasionally with sparse hairs; blade usually thin, usually broadly ovate to broadly elliptic, occasionally oblong or narrowly obovate, (70)-80-130-(155) × (40)-45-60-(65) mm, acuminate to long-acuminate at apex, usually rounded to subcordate or occasionally cuneate at base, glabrous above and below, with lower surface slightly paler, serrate with teeth aristate and often gland-tipped; stipules long-triangular, early deciduous. Infl. a corymbose cluster of (2)-3-4-(6) fls, on short lateral shoots, sometimes clustered near branchlet tips, up to 45-(80) mm long, ± pendent; fls not fragrant; pedicels (10)-14-(35) mm long, glabrous, subtended by serrate bracts. Hypanthium narrowly campanulate; sepals 4-7-(8) mm long, lanceolate or subulate, acuminate, glabrous, greenish to magenta, erect to spreading or occasionally reflexed. Petals 5 or many, ± spreading at anthesis, broadly obovate to orbicular, (12)-14-18-(20) × 9-14 mm, undulate and notched, white or pink-flushed to rose. Stamens < petals; filaments whitish or flushed pale pink. Fr. < 15 mm diam., globose, glabrous, black-purple, bitter; stone smooth.

N.: N. Auckland (well established at Taheke), Auckland (Waitemata Harbour area), Wellington City.

China, Japan 1982

Hillsides and gullies, scrub margins.

FL Aug-Oct.

Naturalised plants of P. serrulata appear to be referable to the Japanese hill cherry (P. serrulata var. spontanea (Maxim.) E. Wilson). Ingram (op. cit.), considered that his var. hupehensis (Ingram) Ingram differed from var. spontanea in having a more erect habit, greyish bark and less reddish and brightly coloured young lvs, all characters which are found in N.Z. naturalised plants. However the two vars are not considered sufficiently distinct to warrant formal recognition (see, Bean, op. cit.). P. serrulata has also given rise to a host of spring-flowered cvs, viz. the Sato Zakura or Japanese garden cherries. Most of these cvs are double-flowered whereas naturalised plants have single fls with 5, broad, pale pink petals.