Nanking Cherry vs Buttonbush - TreeTime.ca

Nanking Cherry vs Buttonbush

Cephalanthus occidentalis

Prunus tomentosa

CUSTOM GROW

NOT AVAILABLE THIS SEASON - MIGHT RETURN

Buttonbush
Nanking Cherry

Buttonbush is a moisture loving shrub that provides year round interest.

It has round, fragrant flowers resembling small buttons or pincushions. The flowers transform into small reddish-brown fruit that persists into winter while the leaves take on shades of red in fall.

Providing essential food to bees, butterflies, and other insects, this shrub is versatile. Try it in your next shrub border.

Nanking Cherry is a small deciduous shrub known for its attractive white blossoms and edible fruit. Its dark red berries are excellent for pies, jellies, and even fresh eating.

Nanking Cherry is highly regarded as a shade tolerant fruit. We often see it planted as a hedge on the north side of a house where few other plants will survive, let alone thrive.

Expect fruit mid to late July. The fruit can vary in sweetness and size considerably. We often hear that people prefer it to sour cherries. Perhaps this is because Nanking Cherry is more closely related to plums. In fact, it is sometimes used as a dwarfing rootstock for plums.

Buttonbush Quick Facts

Nanking Cherry Quick Facts

Zone: 4a
Zone: 2a
Height: 2.4 m (8 ft)
Height: 2.4 m (8 ft)
Spread: 1.5 m (5 ft)
Spread: 2.1 m (7 ft)
Light: any
Light: full sun
Moisture: normal, wet
Moisture: normal
Growth rate: medium
Growth rate: medium
Life span: long
Life span: short
Suckering: low
Suckering: low
Maintenance: medium


Flowers: large, white, spherical
Flowers: white, early spring
Fruit: scarlet sweet but slightly tart cherries, 8-12 mm diameter
Berries: scarlet sweet but slightly tart cherries, 8-12 mm diameter
Hybrid: no
Hybrid: no
Catkins: no
Catkins: no


Native to: ON, QC, NS, NB
Other Names: ando cherry, chinese bush cherry, chinese dwarf cherry, downy cherry, hansens bush cherry, korean cherry, manchu cherry, mountain cherry, shanghai cherry