Wild cherry

Cherry fruit hanging from the tree (Prunus avium)
The Wild Cherry is a common tree growing in woodland hedges and hedgerows, commonly planted in urban areas for ornamental purposes. The tree is appreciated for its beautiful white and pink blossom, but it's the fruit that is of great interest to the forager.

Table of Contents

Wild cherry: Plant profile

Common names

Wild Cherry, Sweet Cherry, Mazzard, Gean, Crann Silin Fiain

Botanical name

Prunus avium (& other Prunus spp.)

Family

Rosaceae (Rose)

Distribution

Native to Europe. Widespread all over England and Wales. Although still common, less frequent in some parts of Scotland and Ireland.

Where to find Wild Cherry

Deciduous woodlands and hedgerow. Widely planted in parks and alongside streets.

When to find Wild Cherry

Fruit early to mid summer.

How to identify Wild Cherry

Wild Cherry is a deciduous tree. The tree has a straight trunk and branches that grow in rings up along the trunk. The bark is brown to grey and have ‘cuts’ around the trunk called lenticels. The leaves have elongated oval shape with serrated edges and bright green in colour, which is lighter underneath. The flowers are either white or pink in colour and are variable dependent on species / variety. The fruit is round and shiny, red in colour and has a stone in the middle.

Wild Cherry lookalikes

The Cherry Plum (Prunus cerasifera) fruit look similar, which is generally a bit bigger and come in different colours such as red and yellow. Nonetheless, all species of cherries and plums are edible.

Cherry blossom (Prunus avium)

 

All about Wild Cherry

There are a few different Cherry species growing in the UK and Ireland. The most common is Wild or Sweet Cherry (Prunus avium), but there are also Sour Cherries (Prunus cerasus) and Bird Cherries (Prunus padus). All Cherries are edible but have different flavour profiles.

The fruit will start to appear at the end of June and you’ll have to be quick to beat the birds. The Cherries are often a little hidden by the leaves, so it’s best to stand under the tree and spot the darker ones, though sometimes it’s more practical to pick under-ripe fruit to ripen at home.

Medicinal properties of Wild Cherry

The fruit stalks are astringent, diuretic and tonic.

Culinary uses and recipes with Wild Cherry

The flowers taste of almonds and can be made into syrup or infused in milk for making custard.

Sweet Cherries are best eaten fresh, straight from the tree and added to natural yoghourt. However, Wild Cherries are relatively small and tedious to pit and are often used to infuse drinks and make preserves and sauces.

Cherry fruit is so versatile. It can be used to make Hungarian Sour Cherry soup (Meggyleves), cooked with game or venison terrines, made into preserves such as jams and pickles or sweet desserts such as panacotta and chocolate & cherry mousse.

In the drinks front, Cherry can be used to make Cherry schnapps (Kirschwasser) and wine made of blossoms or fruit, but fruit can simply be infused into drinks to make flavoured brandy or a mock amaretto. Off the booze? Make a simple and delicious cordial or juice.

Cherry full of fruit (Prunus avium)

 

Safe foraging of Wild Cherries

Just like shop-bought Cherries, the seeds or pips of the Wild Cherry contain hydrogen cyanide and are poisonous. It is usually present in too small a quantity to do any harm. In excess, however, it can cause respiratory failure.

Ecological importance of Wild Cherry

Cherry trees provide a food source for many birds and small mammals, as well as used for shelter and nesting.

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Alvaro Dock

Alvaro Dock

I am the person behind British Local Food. As a forager and wild food educator, my aim is to inspire you to go outdoors, familiarise with your local plants and make the best of their culinary and medicinal properties, in the hope you'd pass on any knowledge gained down to the next generation.

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1 thought on “Wild cherry”

  1. Lovely educational article .important to k now various woodlands plants and trees to identify or is it called kind of foraging?as well as to be able to preserve nature’s gifts and therefore the environment oir planet.
    It’s a gift to mankind to hav free wildlife fruitful things and it’s an adventure to know what all in offer amazing finds Alhamdulillah.
    Thank you

    Reply

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