Prunus return   Key Characteristics: Trees or large shrubs with finely toothed alternately arranged leaves. The twigs are smooth and will sometimes smell of almonds when crushed. Fruits are stony (black and choke cherries have clusters of cherries, wild plum have larger fruits carried individually or in pairs). The single most distinctive feature is the presence of a pair of small glands on the petiole at directly below the blade.     Link to Prunus directory of images. Link to directory of species of Prunus.

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Black Cherry (Prunus serotina) is a large tree common at the arboretum with a distinctive scaled bark.

Chokecherry (Prunus virginiana) is common as a large shrub at the arboretum. Its leaves are broader than that of black cherry.

Wild Plum (Prunus americana) is common along the prairie at the arboretum. It forms large shrubby clumps.