PlantPeers
Back to Catalog
No image available
Rosaceae FAMILY

Prunus mongolica

Prunus mongolica

Edibility
0/5
Medicinal
0/5

Safety & Hazards

None known

Cultivation Details

HabitDeciduous Shrub
Growth—

Prunus mongolica occurs in arid and semi-arid habitats where mean annual rainfall can be 280mm or less. Summers are very hot, with temperatures up to 40°c, whilst winters are very cold, down to -30°c[1, 2]. Requires a sunny postion in a very freely draining soil[2].

Propagation

Seed - requires 2 - 3 months cold stratification and is best sown in a cold frame as soon as it is ripe[3]. Sow stored seed in a cold frame as early in the year as possible[3]. Protect the seed from mice etc. The seed can be rather slow, sometimes taking 18 months to germinate[4]. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots when they are large enough to handle. Grow them on in a greenhouse or cold frame for their first winter and plant them out in late spring or early summer of the following year. Cuttings of half-ripe wood with a heel, mid summer in a frame[5, 3]. Softwood cuttings from strongly growing plants in spring to early summer in a frame[3]. Layering in spring. Cite as: Temperate Plants Database, Ken Fern. temperate.theferns.info. 2026-02-21. <temperate.theferns.info/plant/Prunus+mongolica>

Pollinators

Insects

References

  1. [1]Leaf-surface wax of desert plants as a potential lubricant additive — Yanqiu Xia; Xiaochun Xu; Xin Feng & Guoxiong Chen · 2015 · https://doi.org/10.1007/s40544-015-0081-7 · ISBN 2223-7690 ↩︎
  2. [2]Endemic shrubs in temperate arid and semiarid regions of northern China and their potentials for rangeland restorati — Jianmin Chu; Hongxiao Yang; Qi Lu & Xiaoyan Zhang · 2015 · https://doi.org/10.1093/aobpla/plv063 ↩︎An open access article, downloaded from http://aobpla.oxfordjournals.org/
  3. [3]The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. — Huxley. A. · MacMillan Press · 1992 · ISBN 0-333-47494-5 ↩︎Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.
  4. [4]The Reference Manual of Woody Plant Propagation. — Dirr. M. A. and Heuser. M. W. · Athens Ga. Varsity Press · 1987 · ISBN 0942375009 ↩︎A very detailed book on propagating trees. Not for the casual reader.
  5. [5]Trees and Shrubs Hardy in Great Britain. Vol 1 - 4 and Supplement. — Bean. W. · Murray · 1981 · ISBN - ↩︎A classic with a wealth of information on the plants, but poor on pictures.
  6. [6]Flora of China — Missouri Botanical Garden Press; St. Louis. · 1994 · http://flora.huh.harvard.edu/china/ ↩︎An excellent, comprehensive resource in 25 volumes. In addition to the botanical information the flora also gives basic information on habitat and some uses. An on-line version is also available.
  7. [7]Encyclopaedia of Herbs and their Uses. — Bown. D. · Dorling Kindersley, London. · 1995 · ISBN 0-7513-020-31 ↩︎A very well presented and informative book on herbs from around the globe. Plenty in it for both the casual reader and the serious student. Just one main quibble is the silly way of having two separate entries for each plant.