Prunus caroliniana
Carolina cherry-laurel
Notes:
Not recommended north of USDA zone 7 and the warmer parts of Sunset zone 32, but David Francko in Palms Won't Grow Here asserts hardiness to USDA zone 6b and claims it even does well in his own zone 6a location.
Leaves/twigs aromatic when bruised.
All parts highly poisonous (cyanide). Suitable for topiary. Listed as deer resistant by NCSU (and others) even though NCSU also claims deer browse it, so I guess that just means it recovers well. Container suitability, of all things, is debated (Odenwald/Turner vs. UFL).
Unlike P. laurocerasus which Sunset describes as greedy and difficult to underplant, UFL describes this plant's roots as usually not aggressive or problematic.
'Bright 'n Tight' and 'Compacta' are denser and shorter than the species.
Sources: Sunset, Dirr, Cal Poly, Missouri BG, NCSU, UFL, Odenwald/Turner.
Tags:
aromatic foliage
aromatic twigs/bark
attracts:bees
attracts:birds (ex-humming)
attracts:butterflies
attracts:larval host
attracts:mammals
bark injury sensitive
branches strong
clay tolerant
deer resistant
dense canopy
drought tolerant
easy to grow
exposure:full sun
exposure:part shade
fast-growing
form:multi-trunked
form:shrub
form:trainable to single trunk
form:tree
fragrant flowers
full sun preferred
habit:conical/pyramidal
habit:oval
habit:rounded
habit:upright
litter:fruit
native:eastern North America
persistence:evergreen
poisonous
pruning not required
rich soil preferred
roots:low damage potential
roots:shallow
salt tolerant
sandy soil tolerant
showy flowers
stoloniferous/suckering
type:broadleaf
use:border
use:cut flowers
use:deck/patio
use:foundation
use:hedge
use:mass planting
use:naturalizing
use:screen
use:specimen
use:street
water:moderate to little
water:regular
weedy
well-drained soil required
wind tolerant
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