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Carolina cherry laurel

Prunus caroliniana

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Carolina cherry laurel is an evergreen shrub or small tree with shiny green leaves and bowl-shaped, fragrant white flowers borne in dense clusters in spring. The fruit is lustrous, cherry-like, and black.

Noteworthy CharacteristicsUseful for hedging and screening. Can become weedy.

CareGrow in any moist but well-drained soil.

PropagationRoot semi-ripe cuttings in mid-summer. Bud cultivars in summer or graft in early spring.

ProblemsCaterpillars, borers, scale insects, aphids, leaf hoppers, nematode, and eriophyid mites. Crown gall, mushroom root rot, canker, dieback, lesions, fireblight, leaf curl, powdery mildew, mosaic and ringspot viruses.

  • Genus : Prunus
  • Zones : 10, 7, 8, 9
  • Plant Height : 15 to 30 feet
  • Plant Width : 15 to 30 feet
  • Characteristics : Fragrant Flowers, Showy Fruit
  • Light : Full Sun to Partial Shade
  • Moisture : Medium Moisture
  • Plant Type : Shrubs
  • Bloom Time : Spring
  • Plant Seasonal Interest : Spring Interest
  • Flower Color : White

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