Schipka Cherry Laurel Prunus laurocerasus 'Schipkaensis'
Other Common Name(s):
- Phonetic Spelling
- PROO-nus lo-roh-SER-AY-sis
- This plant has low severity poison characteristics.
- See below
- Description
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A popular Laurel cultivar, 'Schipkaensis' is an upright evergreen shrub or small tree that is goblet-shaped and grows 10 to 15 feet tall and 5 to 7 feet wide maintaining its proportions of being roughly twice as tall as they are wide. This cultivar is named for a location ("-ensis" is a suffix added to a place, meaning "from" that place), the Schipka pass in the mountains separating India from Nepal. In the nursery trade, it is often observed as 'Skipensis' and pronounced as Skip Cherry Laurel.
Glossy green leaves are dense and bear several teeth near the apex as the leaf narrows. This plant blooms in spring and has denser flowering racemes than 'Otto Luyken'. The leaves tend to be more perpendicular to the stem or slightly drooping, whereas those of 'Otto Luyken' are angled upward at a 45-60 degree angle to the stem.
This plant is tolerant of alkaline soils, dry and poor soils, pollution, and heavy pruning. It is moderately tolerant to salt but is intolerant of heavy fertilization. It has a rapid growth rate with competitive roots. This plant tolerates pruning and shade well but will need to be watered regularly especially in hot summers.
The dense canopy of this shrub provides cover and nesting sites for songbirds. It would make an excellent specimen or plant in small groups or even mass plant for screen or privacy hedge. The growth tends to be toward the top of this vase-shaped shrub so planting it at the back of a border with other smaller evergreen shrubs in front of it will help mask the more open bottom branches if a thick screen is required.
Quick ID Hints:
- 2 glands present at leaf base below next to midrib
- Leaves narrowly lanceolate, entire, serrate at apex
- Evergreen shrub, broad and vase or goblet-shaped to 15 feet
Insects, Diseases, and Other Plant Problems: No serious problems.
- See this plant in the following landscape:
- Cultivars / Varieties:
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- Tags:
- Cultivars / Varieties:
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- Tags:
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Attributes:
- Genus:
- Prunus
- Species:
- laurocerasus
- Family:
- Rosaceae
- Life Cycle:
- Woody
- Recommended Propagation Strategy:
- Seed
- Stem Cutting
- Wildlife Value:
- This shrub provides cover and nesting sites for birds like the Eastern towhee.
- Dimensions:
- Height: 10 ft. 0 in. - 15 ft. 6 in.
- Width: 5 ft. 0 in. - 7 ft. 0 in.
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Whole Plant Traits:
- Plant Type:
- Shrub
- Tree
- Woody Plant Leaf Characteristics:
- Broadleaf Evergreen
- Habit/Form:
- Dense
- Rounded
- Spreading
- Vase
- Growth Rate:
- Medium
- Texture:
- Medium
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Cultural Conditions:
- Light:
- Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day)
- Partial Shade (Direct sunlight only part of the day, 2-6 hours)
- Soil Texture:
- Clay
- High Organic Matter
- Loam (Silt)
- Sand
- Shallow Rocky
- Soil pH:
- Alkaline (>8.0)
- Soil Drainage:
- Good Drainage
- Moist
- Available Space To Plant:
- 6-feet-12 feet
- 12-24 feet
- NC Region:
- Coastal
- Mountains
- Piedmont
- USDA Plant Hardiness Zone:
- 5b, 6a, 6b, 7a, 7b, 8a, 8b, 9a, 9b
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Fruit:
- Fruit Color:
- Black
- Purple/Lavender
- Display/Harvest Time:
- Summer
- Fruit Type:
- Drupe
- Fruit Length:
- < 1 inch
- Fruit Description:
- Purple-black drupe .5" long that appears in early summer and matures mid-summer.
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Flowers:
- Flower Color:
- White
- Flower Inflorescence:
- Raceme
- Flower Value To Gardener:
- Fragrant
- Showy
- Flower Bloom Time:
- Spring
- Flower Size:
- < 1 inch
- Flower Description:
- Flowers are white, small, and grow on dense, cylindrical raceme's that are 4" long in leaf axils.
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Leaves:
- Woody Plant Leaf Characteristics:
- Broadleaf Evergreen
- Leaf Color:
- Green
- Leaf Feel:
- Glossy
- Leaf Type:
- Simple
- Leaf Arrangement:
- Alternate
- Leaf Shape:
- Lanceolate
- Leaf Margin:
- Entire
- Serrate
- Hairs Present:
- No
- Leaf Length:
- 3-6 inches
- Leaf Description:
- Leaves are alternate, simple, lanceolate, serrate near the apex, with at least 2 conspicuous glands on underside of leaf at base and near midrib. They are dark glossy green in color, narrow, and 2-6" long.
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Stem:
- Stem Is Aromatic:
- No
- Stem Description:
- Twigs are green.
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Landscape:
- Landscape Location:
- Woodland
- Landscape Theme:
- Cottage Garden
- Design Feature:
- Hedge
- Mass Planting
- Screen/Privacy
- Small groups
- Small Tree
- Specimen
- Attracts:
- Songbirds
- Resistance To Challenges:
- Dry Soil
- Pollution
- Poor Soil
- Salt
- Problems:
- Problem for Cats
- Problem for Dogs
- Problem for Horses
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Poisonous to Humans:
- Poison Severity:
- Low
- Poison Symptoms:
- Stems, leaves, seeds contain cyanide, particularly toxic in the process of wilting: brick red mucous membranes, dilated pupils, difficulty breathing, panting, shock.
- Poison Toxic Principle:
- Cyanogenic glycosides
- Causes Contact Dermatitis:
- No
- Poison Part:
- Leaves
- Seeds
- Stems