tree

Wild cherry

Prunus avium

Native

Growing guidance

Horticultural figures below are practitioner estimates for planning, pending expert review. The botanical record further down is sourced and verifiable.

Current-climate suitability

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Future-climate resilience

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Sun

Full sun

Soil moisture

average, moisture-retentive

Heat tolerance

Up to about 36°C

Cold tolerance

Down to about -30°C

Waterlogging tolerance

2/5

Drought tolerance

3/5

Mature size

8–18 m tall, 8 m spread

Seasonal interest

Spring blossom, summer fruit · White

Maintenance

low

Wildlife supported

General wildlife value 5/5 (verified species relationships are shown only where structured data exists)

Known risks or warnings

Suckers freely; stones and leaves are toxic.

Toxicity: mild

Verified botanical record

Accepted scientific name: Prunus avium (L.) L.
Family: Rosaceae (Rosales)
Rank and status: species · accepted
GBIF record: Taxon 3020791

Recorded native range: Belgium, Brussels-Capital Region, Flanders, Flemish Region, Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, Portugal Continental, Walloon Region

Recorded as introduced in: Arizona, Arkansas, Baleares, Baltic States, British Columbia, Bulgaria, California, Central European Russia, Connecticut, Cyprus, Delaware, District of Columbia and 49 further regions

Ranges are exactly as recorded in the GBIF source checklists and may be incomplete for widely cultivated species.

Prunus avium, commonly called wild cherry, sweet cherry or gean, is a species of cherry, a flowering plant in the rose family, Rosaceae. It is native to western Eurasia and naturalized elsewhere. It is an ancestor of P. cerasus (sour cherry). All parts of the plant except for the ripe fruit are slightly toxic, containing cyanogenic glycosides. The species is often cultivated as an ornamental tree.

Description from Wikipedia — Prunus avium (CC BY-SA), shortened and unedited in substance.

Native status and geographic context

United Kingdom: native
United States: climate-suitable
Australia: climate-suitable

Native status is never inferred from climate similarity. Plants restricted or invasive in a jurisdiction are excluded from recommendations there.

MPF · CC BY 2.5 · Wikimedia Commons

Where to buy

Real retailers serving UK. Garden Forward publishes no prices of its own — each link opens the retailer's own search results, where their current price and stock are shown.

Search Ashridge Nurseries for Prunus avium
Bare-root trees, hedging and fruit in the dormant season.
Search Sarah Raven for Prunus avium
Perennials, bulbs and seed, delivered across the UK.
Search Farmer Gracy for Prunus avium
Bulbs and perennials shipped direct from Dutch growers.
Search Hardy's Cottage Garden Plants for Prunus avium
Specialist hardy perennial nursery.
Search Marshalls Garden for Prunus avium
Fruit, vegetable plants and seed.

No affiliate relationship is in place with these retailers, so nothing here earns Garden Forward a commission. Search links checked 2026-09-17. Availability of a species is never a reason it is recommended.

Companion palettes

Not currently in a sample palette.

Climate-resilient alternatives

Data sources

Taxonomy and native range: GBIF Backbone Taxonomy
Species description: Wikipedia — Prunus avium
Photograph: MPF · Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 2.5)
Growing guidance: Practitioner horticultural estimates pending expert review

Botanical record checked 2026-09-17 · growing guidance last reviewed 2026-06-01 · confidence high

Demonstration data. Climate, plant and retailer records shown here are realistic samples awaiting horticultural validation and live data connections.