in botany; a genus of the monogynia order, belonging to the rosiflorae class of plants.

Species. 1. The domestica, or common plum-tree, grows 20 or 30 feet high, garnished with oval, spear-shaped leaves, and with the pedunculi for the most part single, terminated by flowers, succeeded by plums of many different colours, sizes, and shapes in the varieties. 2. The infititia, wild-plum, or bullace-tree, grows 12 or 15 feet high; the branches somewhat spiny; the leaves oval, hairy underneath; and the pedunculi by pairs, terminated by white flowers succeeded by small, round, plum-like, fruit of different colours in the varieties. 3. The spinosa, black-thorn, or sloe-tree, grows 10 or 12 feet high, very branchy and bushy quite from bottom, armed with strong, sharp spines, small, spear-shaped, smooth leaves, pedunculi growing singly, terminated by flowers, succeeded by small, round, black cherries in autumn. It grows wild everywhere in hedges and woods; and is very proper for planting field hedges, being of very quick and close growth. 4. The cerasus, or common cherry-tree, grows 20 feet or more in height, garnished with oval clusters of lanceolate, smooth leaves, umbellate flowers, succeeded by clusters of red roundish fruit of different sizes and properties in the varieties. 5. The avium, or great wild-cherry tree, grows 40 or 50 feet high, having oval, spear-shaped leaves, downy underneath, with umbellate sessile clusters of white flowers, succeeded by small round fruit of different properties in the varieties. 6. The padus, or common bird-cherry tree, grows 15 or 20 feet high, of a shrub-like growth, with a spreading head, large, oblong, rough serrated leaves, having two glands at the back of the base like the other, and with shorter, more compact clusters of flowers, succeeded by large red fruit. This grows wild in hedges in the north parts of England. 7. The Virginiana, or Virginian bird-cherry, grows 30 feet high, dividing into a very branchy head, having a dark purple bark, oval, slightly serrated, shining green leaves, having two glands at the forepart of the base, and long clusters of white flowers, succeeded by small, round, berry-like, black fruit. 8. The Canadensis, or Canada dwarf bird cherry, grows but four or five feet high, branching horizontally near the ground with smooth branches; broad, spear-shaped, rough downy leaves without glands; and long clusters of white flowers, succeeded by small, round, berry-like, black fruit, ripe in autumn. 9. The mahaleb, or perfumed cherry, grows 10 or 15 feet high, with smooth whitish branches, small, oval shining green leaves, and corymbose clusters of white flowers, succeeded by small fruit. 10. The armeniaca, or apricot tree, grows 20 feet high, with a large spreading head, having reddish shoots, large nearly heart shaped leaves, and close-fitting pale-red flowers rising all along the sides of the young branches; succeeded by large, roundish fruit of a yellow and reddish colour in different varieties.

Culture. All the different varieties of plums have at first been raised from the stones, and are afterwards preferred by budding and grafting on any plum-stock. The same method is applicable to cherries; only these are grafted to most advantage upon stocks of the wild black and red cherry raised from the stones of the fruit. The apricot-trees are propagated by budding on any kind of plum-stocks.