The Dendrological Society has chosen the bird cherry as this year's tree in Latvia. Wishing to highlight a particularly beautiful native Latvian species, and at the same time to draw attention to the problems caused by the pests typical of the bird cherry, the nomination was submitted by Liene Opincāne, head of the dendrological parks of AS “Latvijas valsts meži” and a board member of the Dendrological Society:

“Spring in Latvia is unimaginable without the flowering clouds of bird cherry along the bends of rivers and in towns and cities too. To my mind, the bird cherry flowering season, both visually and in the way it makes you feel, is part of the canon of the Latvian landscape. That is why I put the bird cherry forward for the tree of the year nomination.

At the same time, bird cherries are exposed to a high risk from pests – periodically a moth of the native fauna, the bird-cherry ermine (Yponomeuta evonymella), multiplies on them in vast numbers. Its caterpillars can strip the leaves entirely and wrap the crowns of the trees in a “silvery veil”. Although the sight can seem dramatic, bird cherries usually recover successfully, and in the long term such invasions do not significantly affect the vitality of the trees, which testifies to the species' natural resilience.

In putting a tree forward for the nomination of the year, we want both to celebrate and to remind people of the beauty and uniqueness of a particular species, and also to draw attention to a problem associated with it.”

The common bird cherry is a native woody species found widely throughout Latvia. Bird cherries tolerate periodic flooding well, which makes the species an important stabiliser of floodplain ecosystems.

Ecologically, the common bird cherry is a highly valuable woody plant. Bird cherries usually flower in May, providing an early source of nectar and pollen for pollinators, while in the second half of summer the black, glossy drupes of the bird cherry are an important food source for birds. Bird cherry wood is relatively dense and tough, and well suited to carving and turning.

In seasonal traditions, folklore and literature, the bird cherry symbolises spring, youth and the awakening of nature.

Unusual bird cherries – at the LVM arboretum in Kalsnava

The bird cherry grows both in natural ecosystems and in plantings created by people. In May, 109 different species and cultivars of bird cherry flower at the same time at the Latvijas valsts meži arboretum in Kalsnava, the oldest of them planted when the arboretum was founded in 1975.

In spring, the common bird cherry cultivar ‘Colorata’ flowers magnificently at the arboretum for about two weeks – it is remarkable for its soft pinkish-rose flowers, and it has unusual foliage that changes colour from spring to autumn, from green to purple and even brown.

It is also worth travelling to Kalsnava to see the Maack's bird cherry – whereas the common bird cherry is more like a shrub, the Maack's bird cherry has a larger trunk and is more like a small tree. The Maack's bird cherry stands out for its trunk – not only is it bronze in tone, but it also has flaking bark whose colour is especially striking in winter. The Maack's bird cherries at the arboretum are planted in a large group – 25 trees together, which creates a special atmosphere when they are in bloom.

The arboretum is also home to the Virginia bird cherry (Prunus virginiana), whose leaves, unlike those of the common bird cherry, are turned the other way round. Once flowering is over, the Virginia bird cherry is adorned with bright red fruits instead of the usual black berries.

At the Kalsnava arboretum all the bird cherries flower more or less at the same time, so the middle and end of May, barring extreme weather, is an excellent time to travel to Kalsnava and get to know the diversity of bird cherries in full bloom.
In the photograph: the common bird cherry cultivar ‘Colorata’ at the “Latvijas valsts meži” arboretum in Kalsnava