Western
Chokecherry
(Scientific Name: Prunus
demissa)
Description:
A shrub or small tree with finely toothed, elliptical leaves 1 1/2-4
inches long. Many small, creamy-white flowers form long, dense,
somewhat dropping racemes. Fruits are deep red or purple, each
containing a single hard stone.
Habitat:
Stream banks, moist draws and hillsides to about 8000 feet. Widely
distributed throughout the United States and Canada.
Uses: Chokecherries are quite bitter and
astringent unless they are completely ripe. Indians ate them raw or
dried theminto cakes after mashing the fruit, pits and all. In the
spring and early summer, livestock are frequently poisoned by the
leaves, which, together with the seeds, contain hydrocyanic acid.
This poison is quite volatile; drying and/or boiling removes it.
