Identification of this possible Prunus species

[Maiden69]

Morning all, last year I was able to pull a seedling of the tree below as the landscapers on the church parking lot were getting ready to mow them down as their spring preparation.



This year I noticed several of the same trees planted in the apartment complex I am temporarily staying and my wife thought about getting one for the house we are building now. It has a very coarse peeling bark with very small single-petal white flowers. I was able to get a few pics of one close to the apartment.

Does anyone knows what tree it is? The bark before peeling looks identical to my yoshino cherry.

 

[rockm]

Could be a Mexican Plum (Prunus mexicana) or plum species.

 

[penumbra]

Plum was my first guess as well, but I have a peach that has these pure whit flowers and rough bark as well.

 

[Bonsai Forest]

W/e it is, it will be a stunning bonsai for sure, dang

 

[Michael P]

Could be a Mexican Plum (Prunus mexicana) or plum species.

Definitely Mexican plum.

 

[Maiden69]

Thanks, I completely forgot about Mexican Plum! I saw it recommended on the Texas A&M website, that one and the Texas Red Bud as small flowering trees for my area a few years back.

 

[Betula1]

Are you sure it was a seedling? There are hundreds of Ornamental Prunus cultivars which are often grafted onto a different Prunus rootstocks by the nursery growers, and these rootstocks will often grow sucker shoots from the roots which resemble seedlings, but are quite different from the flowering tree you see above ground, so your ''seedling'' may not be the type of tree you're expecting!! Just saying....!

 

[Maiden69]

Are you sure it was a seedling? There are hundreds of Ornamental Prunus cultivars which are often grafted onto a different Prunus rootstocks by the nursery growers, and these rootstocks will often grow sucker shoots from the roots which resemble seedlings, but are quite different from the flowering tree you see above ground, so your ''seedling'' may not be the type of tree you're expecting!! Just saying....!

None of the trees I posted pictures of are grafted. And Mexican Plum is a native tree in Texas, I never seen one up close until now. The seedling was growing right underneath the canopy of the tree in this picture, leaves are identical.

 

[Michael P]

Mexican plum seed germinates very readily in landscapes, and these trees produce A LOT of fruit.

 

[nuttiest]

How do you get a tree to have this much flowering? Stop feeding nitrogen? Do the tight flowers automatically mean close internodes?

 

[rockm]

How do you get a tree to have this much flowering? Stop feeding nitrogen? Do the tight flowers automatically mean close internodes?

Get a variety or species of plum that flowers heavily--most sold as landscape material do. Simple as that. Wild plums, including Mexican plums, also can have heavy flowering if the tree is healthy, and even if it's not all that healthy. I've got numerous landscape plums around me that are half rotten and fungal infected that flower this way every year and produce fruit.

 

[Maiden69]

I've got numerous landscape plums around me that are half rotten and fungal infected that flower this way every year and produce fruit.

If I had not seen this myself I wouldn't believe it. There is one tree on the same apartment complex as the trees posted above that I thought it was entirely dead, black bark all over, black branches where all the other ones are nice and silvery like my yoshino before creating bark. All the trees are beginning to drop the flowers and this little sucker is just starting to push buds and bloom all over the tree.

 

[Goodbrake]

I have a batch of about 50 of these (prunus mexicana) started from seed this year. I will be interesting to see how the flowering varies between individuals once they're more mature.

 

[Maiden69]

I have a batch of about 50 of these (prunus mexicana) started from seed this year. I will be interesting to see how the flowering varies between individuals once they're more mature.

I don't think there will be much difference unless there is some kind of mutation or sport in the tree. All the plums I have seen around have the same flower characteristics.

 

[Goodbrake]

I don't think there will be much difference unless there is some kind of mutation or sport in the tree. All the plums I have seen around have the same flower characteristics.

I've seen slight color variations, not in the petals, but in the stamens and other structures.

 

[Maiden69]

This is the seedling I rescued last spring, I think it will do great.