Mahaleb cherry

Prunus mahaleb, the mahaleb cherry or St Lucie cherry, is a species of cherry tree. The tree is cultivated for a spice obtained from the seeds inside the cherry stones. The seeds have a fragrant smell and have a taste comparable to bitter almonds with cherry notes. The tree is native in the Mediterranean region, Iran and parts of central Asia. It is adjudged to be native in northwestern Europe or at least it is naturalized there. It is a deciduous tree or large shrub, growing to 2–10 m (rarely up to 12 m) tall with a trunk up to 40 cm diameter. The tree's bark is grey-brown, with conspicuous lenticels on young stems, and shallowly fissured on old trunks. The leaves are 1.5–5 cm long, 1–4 cm. wide, alternate, clustered at the end of alternately arranged twigs, ovate to cordate, pointed, have serrate edges, longitudinal venation and are glabrous and green. The petiole is 5–20 mm, and may or may not have two glands. The flowers are fragrant, pure white, small, 8–20 mm diameter, with an 8–15 mm pedicel; they are arranged 3-10 together on a 3–4 cm long raceme. The flower pollination is mainly by bees. The fruit is a small thin-fleshed cherry-like drupe 8–10 mm in diameter, green at first, turning red then dark purple to black when mature, with a very bitter flavour; flowering is in mid spring with the fruit ripening in mid to late summer. Prunus mahaleb occurs in thickets and open woodland on dry slopes; in central Europe at altitudes up to 1,700 m, and in highlands at 1,200-2,000 m in southern Europe. It has become naturalised in some temperate areas, including Europe north of its native range (north to Great Britain and Sweden), and locally in Australia and the United States. It demonstrates selective fruit abortion, producing a high proportion of excess flowers that result in low fruit set levels. This reduces the number of 'poor quality' fruit and increases the viability of its seeds. A scientific study discovered an ecological dependence between the plant and four species of frugivorous birds in southeastern Spain; blackbirds and blackcaps proved to be the most important seed dispersers. When Prunus mahaleb is fruiting, these birds consume the fruit almost exclusively, and disperse the seeds to the locations favourable for the tree's growth. The way in which some birds consume the fruits and the habitats those birds use may act as a selective force in determining which genetic variations of the cherry flourish. The plant is cultivated for a spice obtained from the seeds inside the cherry stones. It is fragrant and has the taste of bitter almonds. It is used in small quantities to sharpen sweet foods, such as the Turkish sweet-bread çörek (chorak), the Greek sweet-bread tsoureki or the Armenian sweet-bread chorak. The chemical constituents are still uncertain, but the spice is prepared from the seeds, either by grinding and powdering the seed kernels, or in oil extracted from the seeds. The wood is hard, and is used in cabinet-making and for pipes.