Nanking Cherry vs Cherry Prinsepia - TreeTime.ca

Nanking Cherry vs Cherry Prinsepia

Prunus tomentosa

Prinsepia sinensis

COMING SOON

(new stock expected: fall of 2025)

CUSTOM GROW

Nanking Cherry
Cherry Prinsepia

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.

Cherry Prinsepia is an attractive, cold hardy shrub with thorny stems and a rounded shape.

Primarily used for its shrub and hedge characteristics, Cherry Prinsepia is also grown for its ornamental fruit. Tart in flavor, the red berries are edible and enjoyed by birds and humans alike.

If deer are an issue on your property, try planting Cherry Prinsepia in a tight row to create a dense hedge to deter them.

Note: Unfortunately this difficult to grow species is not currently scheduled to grow at TreeTime.ca. Perhaps try purchasing seed from SeedTime.ca and growing your own? Or sign up for a restock notification above.

Nanking Cherry Quick Facts

Cherry Prinsepia Quick Facts

Zone: 2a
Zone: 3b
Height: 2.4 m (8 ft)
Height: 1.8 m (6 ft)
Spread: 2.1 m (7 ft)
Spread: 1.8 m (6 ft)
Light: full sun
Light: full sun
Moisture: normal
Moisture: normal
Growth rate: medium
Growth rate: medium
Life span: short
Life span: medium
Suckering: low
Suckering: none


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


Other Names: ando cherry, chinese bush cherry, chinese dwarf cherry, downy cherry, hansens bush cherry, korean cherry, manchu cherry, mountain cherry, shanghai cherry