Black Cherry in full bloom
The characterization of Black Cherry as solely a “pioneer” species is incorrect. Black cherry is significantly shade-tolerant allowing it to regenerate well in mature forest canopy gaps, making it a climax species of many eastern forest types. Climax species are species that are still present when an ecosystem is at its most mature, least disturbed stage before the next large scale disturbance occurs. While shade intolerant Oaks and Hickories may continue to decline in many eastern old growth forests; Black Cherry will reach an equilibrium and possibly increase overtime as more shade intolerant species fall. This is good as not too many tree species are shade tolerant enough to establish in natural forest canopy openings, so black cherry contributes to the long-term canopy diversity of forests like Elms, and Ash once did as semi-shade tolerant species. While Black Cherry may be one of the first species to help reforest land, thanks to the native fauna dispersing the seeds, it's also present in the climax of stability in old growth forests thanks to its intermediate shade tolerance.
Black Cherry in an Old growth Forest
Beyond the wildlife of the fruits and seeds, Black Cherry holds a unique value in the spring. While prairie wildflowers are not blooming, and spring ephemerals (if present) are beginning to bloom; Black Cherry becomes one of the first medium sized trees to bloom in the spring. Their blooms are highly accessible to various native bees, butterflies, and moths offering an abundance of nectar and pollen. This tree can help buffer the lack of pollen and nectar that would have been produced by spring ephemerals in areas that ephmerals no longer present or abundant in.
Two of the pictures shown later in this series depict how a non-native invasive European Cherry Tree (Prunus avium) is threatening to change successional forest patterns by outgrowing Beech and Maple in the understory as a shade tolerant invasive tree. Most invasive trees aren't shade tolerant, making this a unique and alarming phenomenon.
Black Cherry fruit maturing, black cherries are also a major insect host plant.
Maturing Black Cherry fruits
Wild-Cherry Sphinx (Sphinx drupiferarum) caterpillar
Beech in the foreground, Black Cherry in the back ground
Prunus avium (Invasive - Center) outgrowing sugar maple, hackberry, beech saplings in the understory of a forest.
Invasive Prunus avium penetrating an old growth forest as a shade tolerant invasive tree.
Black Cherry with an invasive Multi-flora rose beginning to leaf-out.
Two bee mimicking flies mating on black cherry.
Black Cherry Blooms
Black Cherry Seedlings in our nursery
1 gallon Black Cherry trees in our nursery with our employee Shaun for scale behind them.
Black Cherry native range map.
Key for the Maps Above
Light Green = Reported to an herbarium for the county as native and wild occuring.
Teal = Reported to an herbarium for the county as present and introduced by man.
Yellow = Reported to an herbarium for the county as present but rare.
Green = Reported to an herbarium as present in the state.
Orange = Once reported to an herbarium as native but now considered extinct in that county.
When considering planting a native plant, always google search the scientific name aka latin name with the word “bonap” to look up its native range as reported by country records submitted to herbariums. If the plant is native within 100 miles of your location it will be more ecologically applicable than plants native further away. The further away a plant is native, often, the less ecologically applicable it becomes.