Description

Prunus cerasoides, the wild Himalayan cherry, is a large deciduous tree of the family Rosaceae, native to the temperate Himalayan forests of northern India — particularly Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, and Sikkim — Nepal, Bhutan, and southwestern China at altitudes between 1,500 and 3,000 metres. The tree produces masses of deep-pink flowers before leaf emergence in late winter, making it one of the most spectacular flowering trees of the Himalayas and the national flower of Manipur and state tree of Meghalaya. The heartwood — Padmaka in classical Ayurveda — is documented in the Charaka Samhita and Sushruta Samhita as a cooling, blood-purifying, and skin-benefiting botanical, incorporated in preparations for skin diseases, inflammatory conditions, and haemorrhagic disorders. The heartwood pieces are traded from Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand herbal markets.