Nanking Cherry vs Manor Cherry Plum - TreeTime.ca

Nanking Cherry vs Manor Cherry Plum

Prunus besseyi x salicina Manor

Prunus tomentosa

Manor Cherry Plum
Nanking Cherry

Manor Cherry Plum has a nice sweet flavour and a hint of astringency, making it a top Cherry Plum variety. They ripen in mid to late August and are well suited to fresh eating, baking, and preserves.

The fruit is closer to a plum than a cherry but is smaller than most plums.The Manor Cherry Plum has thin dark purple skin, nearly black when ripe and the flesh is purplish-red. The flesh is almost freestone and is tender and juicy. Similar to other stone fruits, it does not store for very long but can keep for up to a week in the fridge.

The Manor Cherry Plum is a hybrid between a Western Sand Cherry and a Japanese (Chinese) Plum. For fruit production, it needs to be planted with another variety for cross-pollination. Canada Plum and American Plum are considered universal pollinizers.

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.

Manor Cherry Plum Quick Facts

Nanking Cherry Quick Facts

Lowest Price: $16.99 - SAVE UP TO 15%
Lowest Price: $14.99 - SAVE UP TO 25%
Zone: 2a
Zone: 2a
Height: 1.5 m (5 ft)
Height: 2.4 m (8 ft)
Spread: 1.5 m (5 ft)
Spread: 2.1 m (7 ft)
Light: full sun
Light: full sun
Moisture: normal
Moisture: normal
Growth rate: medium
Growth rate: medium
Life span: short
Life span: short
Suckering: medium
Suckering: low
Maintenance: medium


Flowers: white, early spring
Fruit: nearly black when ripe and purplish-red flesh
Fruit: scarlet sweet but slightly tart cherries, 8-12 mm diameter
Berries: scarlet sweet but slightly tart cherries, 8-12 mm diameter
Fruit size: 2.5-3 cm in diameter
Flavor: sweet flavour, slightly astringent
Harvest: mid to late August
Hybrid: no
Hybrid: no
Catkins: no
Catkins: no


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