“Prunus emarginata” by Walter Siegmund, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0, CC BY-SA 2.5, CC BY-SA 2.0, and CC BY-SA 1.0

Hul'q'umi'num' name:

t’ulum’ulhp – bitter cherry tree

English Name:

Bitter Cherry

Alternative English Names:

Oregon cherry

Scientific Name:

Prunus emarginata

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Description

Description, Habitat, Ecology, Distribution

Bitter cherry is a shrub to small tree, growing from 2-15 m (6.5-49 ft) tall. The deciduous leaves are finely toothed and rounded at the tips. The bark is smooth, reddish-brown or grey, and with prominent horizontal rows of raised pores. The white or pinkish flowers produce small red cherries. Bitter cherry grows in moist areas in forests and along streams from low to middle elevations.

Island Cultural Role

The inner bark of bitter cherry has been used as an internal medicine for various respiratory ailments and as an external medicine, as it is considered to be good in the treatment of infection. The flexible yet strong outer bark has been used as a wrapping to attach points to fishing spear or harpoon shafts.

Language

Hul'q'umi'num' Name

t’ulum’ulhp – bitter cherry tree

APA

t̓ələm̓əłp

Speaker

Delores Louie

Hul'q'umi'num' Name 2

t’ulum’ – bitter cherry bark

APA

t̓ələm̓

Speaker

Ruby Peter

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Photos