Prunus mume Sieb. & Zucc. (Rosaceae) Japanese Apricot
Native of China, found wild in scrub in W. Sichuan and W. Hubei at 300-2500 m, with light pink or white flowers in March-April. Long cultivated both in China and Japan for its flowers and fruit, which are round, like large cherries, and often eaten pickled. A beautiful deciduous shrub or small tree, with black bark and long slender green twigs; the leaves, which emerge after the flowers, are broadly ovate, with an acuminate apex. Many varieties are grown in Japan with scented flowers red to white, and single to semi-double. Prunus mume is of great and refined beauty, but rare in cultivation. It is often grown on a wall, but makes a beautiful specimen in sheltered woodland. Hardy to -15°C. Early spring.