WILD PIN CHERRIES ARE BLOOMING

LARGE PIN CHERRY SHRUB ON STAR ROUTE

PIN CHERRY FLOWERS AND BARK

Friday, 8:30 AM.  41 degrees F at the ferry dock, 40 on the back porch.  The wind has changed from NE to SW, and is mostly calm with light gusts (the Nor'easter again lasted three days),  The sky is partly cloudy, the humidity 84%.  The barometer is steady, at 30.34" but will plummet on Saturday, bringing a weekend of rain with highs remaining in the 40's.  Creeks and rivers are at flood stage  already.
   Pin cherry is a shrub or small tree native to most of Canada and the Great Lakes region and mountainous areas in the northern United States.  It bears white flowers in loose umbels, which are followed by sour but edible bright red cherries.  The bark is smooth and gray, distinguishing it from other native cherries.  It is a major wildlife food, both the fruit and as browse, and was an important Native American food and medicinal plant.  It is far too aggressive and short lived for landscaping except for naturalizing.  It is an important reforestation species after a forest fire, as the seeds can lay dormant in the soil for as long as a century and still sprout after a forest fire.  Burned over areas are often revegitated with blooming, fruiting native pin cherries.
   I only have a few recorded blooming dates: 5/03/13; 5/18/09.  Pin cherries are great for jellies and jams, and usually easy to find in  abundance in burned or cut over areas.