This tetraploid (2n = 32) is a cultigen ("sour-" or "pie-cherry") that may be derived from P. avium L. and P. fruticosa Palls (Cr). It is occasionally persistent or naturalized in eastern states (K), with records concentrated in slightly warmer zones than avium (mid-temperate versus cool-temperate). As with avium, the cultivated-versus-wild status of most records from Ky. remains somewhat uncertain. The "flowering cherry" cultivars from East Asia are in distinct sections of subgenus Cerasus, including the winter-flowering P. subhirtella Miquel, spring-flowering P. speciosa (Koidz.) Nakai and hybrids (W); they are widely planted in Ky. but not reported to spread by sucker or seed.