Prunus L.
Genus composed of some 255 species, mainly distributed along temperate and cold zones of the Northern Hemisphere. In North Africa it is represented by 8 species, all distributed throughout the Mediterranean area.
Correa, D. P. J. Martínez García, M. J. Sánchez Blanco, J. López Alcolea, C. Jiménez Box, P. Martínez Gómez (2021). El almendro mediterráneo [Prunus webbii (Spach) Vierh., Rosaceae]: una especie olvidada de la flora ibérica con potencial agronómico. Revista de Fruticultura 82: 6-21.
Ferrer‐Gallego, P.P., Wajer, J., & Benítez, G. (2023). Typification of the scientific names of the common almond Prunus dulcis and its wild relative P. webbii (Rosaceae, Prunoideae). Taxon, 72(5), 1080-1092.
Kurtto, A. 2009. Rosaceae (pro parte majore). In: Euro+Med Plantbase – the information resource for Euro-Mediterranean plant diversity.
Key to species
1 Tree with coriaceous, persistent leaves Prunus lusitanica
1 Trees or shrubs with leaves not coriaceous, deciduous 2
2 Shrubs thorny and erect, or creeping subshrubs 3
2 Trees not thorny 5
3 Subshrub creeping, not thorny, with red fruits Prunus prostrata
3 Shrub erect, more or less thorny, with non-red fruit 4
4 Fruits ovoid-compressed, acute, villous-silky, green, that open revealing endocarp (amonds) Prunus webbii
4 Fruits globose, glabrous, bluish-black (sloe berries) Prunus spinosa
5 Fruits black-blueish (in fact black, but covered with bluish-white waxy powder Prunus insititia
5 Fruits reddish-yellow, red or black 6
6 Inflorescence in long raceme Prunus padus
6 Inflorescence umbelliform, sessile, or in short corymbiform raceme 7
7 Leaves suborbicular. Inflorescence pedunculate Prunus mahaleb
7 Leaves oblong-lanceolate. Inflorescence sessile, although the flowers have long pedicels Prunus avium
Updated by: N. Hidalgo.