FNPS Plant Database

Prunus caroliniana

cherry-laurel, laurel cherry
  • Photo by: Shirley Denton, Suncoast Chapter FNPS
  • Photo by: Shirley Denton, Suncoast Chapter FNPS
  • Photo by: Shirley Denton, Suncoast Chapter FNPS

Nomenclature

Common Name:

cherry-laurel, laurel cherry

Synonym(s):

Genus species:

Prunus caroliniana

Family:

Rosaceae

Plant Specifics

Form:

Tree

Size:

20–45 ft tall by 15–30 ft wide

Life Span:

Long-lived perennial

Flower Color:

white

Fruit Color:

black

Phenology:

Evergreen. Blooms early spring. Fruits ripen late summer-fall

Noted For:

Showy Flowers, Interesting Foliage

Landscaping

Recommended Uses:

Can be used as a specimen plant, hedge (can be trimmed), shelter plant, or wildlife thicket. Appreciated for its shiny dark foliage.

Considerations:

This plant can be too prolific as the many seedlings that come up both around the plant and under bird perching sites can become problematic. Also spreads by underground stems. Weak, prone to wind damage.

Availability:

Seed

Propagation:

Seed, rhizomes.

Light:

Full Sun, Part Sun

Moisture Tolerance:

Always Flooded---------------------------------Extremely Dry

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Usually moist, occasional inundation -to- Somewhat long very dry periods

Salt Water Flooding Tolerance:

Unknown

Salt Spray/Salty Soil Tolerance:

Some tolerance to salty wind but not direct salt spray

Soil or Other Substrate:

Sand, Loam

Soil pH:

Broadly tolerant

Suitable to Grow In:

8A,8B,9A,9B

USDA zones are based on the average annual extreme minimum winter temperature.

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Vouchered In:

Distribution
Vouchered
Not vouchered
Selected
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No county distribution is available for this plant yet.
Starting…
Map coded by Melissa Fernandez-de Cespedes (Paynes Prairie Chapter)

Ecology

Wildlife:

Pollinators, Birds

Attracts bees.

Seed is spread by birds.

Native Habitats:

Dry-moist sites. Upland hardwood forests, upland mixed forest, secondary woods, riverine swamps, disturbed areas

Natural Range in Florida:

Comments:

Ethnobotany:

General Comments:

The range extends from Texas to North Carolina mostly in the coastal plan and adjacent areas of sandy hills. In Florida, the range is continuous down to central Florida and then peters out, a pattern that largely corresponds to climate (temperature patterns). This species should grow well from the central peninsula northward.
FNPS Plant Print

Citations:

Deyrup, Mark, Jay Edirisinghe, and Beth Norden. (2002). The diversity and floral hosts of bees at the Archbold Biological Station, Florida (Hymenoptera: Apoidea). Insecta Mundi, 544. ( https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/insectamundi/544/ ). Accessed 2026. University of Nebraska, Lincoln, NE.


Fox, Laurie, and Joel Koci. (2021). Trees and Shrubs that Tolerate Saline Conditions. ( https://www.pubs.ext.vt.edu/430/430-031/430-031.html ). Accessed 2026. Virginia Cooperative Extension, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA.


Haehle, Robert G. and Joan Brookwell. (1999). Native Florida Plants. Gulf Publishing Company. Houston, TX.


Huegel, Craig N. (2010). Native Plant Landscaping for Florida Wildlife. University Press of Florida, Gainesville.


Osorio, Rufino. (2001). A Gardener's Guide to Florida's Native Plants. University Press of Florida, Gainesville.


Watkins, John and Thomas Sheehan. (1975). Florida Landscape Plants, Native and Exotic. University Presses of Florida, Gainesville.


Wunderlin, R. P, B. F. Hansen, A. R. Franck, and F. B. Essig. (1999+). Atlas of Florida Plants. ( https://florida.plantatlas.usf.edu/ ). [S. M. Landry and K. N. Campbell (application development), USF Water Institute.] Institute for Systematic Botany, University of South Florida, Tampa.

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