Wildflower of the valley
Himalayan Bird Cherry, Padus cornuta, Cerasus cornuta
Prunus cornuta
- How easy to find
- Easy to see — you will see it easily on the trail
- Flower size
- Small to medium
- Family
- Rosaceae (Rose family)
- Local name
- Padam, पदम
- Type
- Deciduous
- Height
- medium,small
- Flower colour
- White
- Flowering
- April to June
About Himalayan Bird Cherry, Padus cornuta, Cerasus cornuta
Prunus cornuta or Himalayan Bird Cherry is a deciduous medium sized tree having grey brown to brown bark. Leaves are oblong to lanceolate. Small white flowers are found in long drooping clusters. Fruits are round cherries initially red, ripen to dark-purple and black. The fruit gets infected by an insect sometimes and becomes long and horn-like from which comes its specific name cornuta refers to horn like. The fruit is edible and leaves are used for fodder.
Where to find it
- Near the entrance of the valley
What the name means
Prunus is the classical Latin name for plum; cornuta means "horned", after the beaked fruit.
