Wasatch Wildflowers: Chokecherry (Prunus virginiana)

Photo: Chokecherry Blooms – photo: Ashley Brown

PARK CITY, Utah. — The chokecherry is a flowering shrub featuring cone-shaped clusters of tiny five-petaled white flowers that grow up to half an inch wide.

In mid to late summer, the tart chokecherries are an essential food source for mule deer, moose, coyotes, bighorn sheep, elk, birds, and small mammals.

For centuries native people have utilized the bark and roots for medicinal teas and sedatives. In addition, the fruit is a favorite for jelly, syrup, and liquors.

Chokecherry trees grow in sagebrush, mountain shrub, and aspen communities between 4,500 and 10,000 feet. The shrub can grow between 4 and 25 feet high. Flowers bloom in late spring, and fruit appears in the late summer.