Cherry Laurel Trees

Video: Prunus Caroliniana - Carolina Laurel Cherry

Video: Laurel Hedging Plants - Hopes Grove Nurseries

English laurels or common cherry laurels are native to Asia Minor. They grow between 10 and 18 inches tall with a 25- to 30-foot spread. They have rounded forms, smooth reddish-brown bark and oval-shaped, dark-green leaves with slightly serrated edges. The leaves grow as long as 7 inches depending on the plant. Common cherry laurels produce 2- to 5-inch-long racemes, or elongated clusters, of fragrant white blossoms during the spring. Half-inch-long black fruits replace the flowers.

Video: About Cherry Laurels

Carolina cherry laurels grow approximately 20 to 40 feet tall with a 15- to 20-foot spread. Younger specimens have a pyramidal form, but they become more rounded as they mature. They have simple, alternate, oval-shaped green leaves with smooth margins. The leaves and stems emit a smell reminiscent of maraschino cherries when crushed. The evergreen foliage retains its color during the fall and winter. The plants produce showy clusters of small white blossoms during the spring, followed by small, round black fruits.

Common cherry laurels are commercially available in several cultivars. Zabeliana grows approximately 5 to 6 feet tall and has narrow leaves, while Otto Luyken, a small variety, only grows between 3 and 4 feet tall. Schipka laurel grows between 4 and 5 feet tall with a 5- to 8-foot spread. Carolina cherry laurels are available in the Compacta form, which has a dense form and grows around 20 feet tall, and Bright N` Tight, which grows between 8 and 10 feet tall.

Carolina cherry laurels are cold-hardy in United States Department of Agriculture hardiness zones 7 through 10, while common cherries are hardy to Zone 6. Both species prefer well-drained moist soil with full sunlight or partial shade. Common cherry laurels have few pest problems, but borer insects attack stressed Carolina cherries. Root rot infections can damage plants that grow in soggy or poorly-drained soils. They both work well as hedges, screens and specimen plants.