Pin Cherry vs White Meadowsweet - TreeTime.ca

Pin Cherry vs White Meadowsweet

Prunus pensylvanica

Spiraea alba

NOT AVAILABLE THIS SEASON - MIGHT RETURN

NOT AVAILABLE THIS SEASON - MIGHT RETURN

Pin Cherry
White Meadowsweet

Pin Cherry is a small tree that produces clusters of white blossoms in spring followed by bright red berries that ripen through the summer. The attractive red color of the leaves in the fall is an added bonus.

The fruit is quite sour when eaten fresh but is excellent when cooked into jam or jelly. Birds love the berries and will be attracted to your property.

White Meadowsweet is a woody, deciduous shrub that begins to bloom in early summer with small white and pink flowers. Its foliage turns from a light green into an attractive golden-yellow later in the fall.

The White Meadowsweet, also known as Mead-Wort or Bride-Wort, is favored by birds and butterflies but is largely ignored by deer. They produce small brown berries in the summer, and while they are technically edible, they are not sweet and are more desired by wildlife.

Pin Cherry Quick Facts

White Meadowsweet Quick Facts

Zone: 2a
Zone: 3a
Height: 9 m (30 ft)
Height: 1.2 m (4 ft)
Spread: 5 m (16 ft)
Spread: 0.9 m (3 ft)
Light: full sun
Light: partial shade, full sun
Moisture: normal
Moisture: normal, wet
Growth rate: fast
Growth rate: fast
Life span: short
Life span: short
Suckering: low
Suckering: high
Maintenance: medium


Fall colour: very bright orangish-red
Fall colour: golden yellow
Bark: reddish brown bark has an attractive appearance in the winter
Flowers: white
Flowers: white, small
Fruit: clusters of edible, red cherries often used for jams and jellies
Berries: clusters of edible, red cherries often used for jams and jellies
Hybrid: no
Hybrid: no
Catkins: no
Catkins: no


Native to: AB, BC, SK, MB, ON, QC, NS, NB, NL, NT, PE
Native to: AB, SK, MB, ON, QC, NS, NB, NL, PE
Other Names: bird cherry, fire cherry, pincherry, red cherry, wild red cherry
Other Names: mead wort, meadowsweet, narrowleaf meadowsweet, pale bridewort, pipestem