Western Chokecherry (Prunus virginiana).
This commonly grows in thickets, especially along waterways, mountainsides below about 8000 ft (2500 m) elevation, and occasionally in the drier plains. It grows to about 8 to 12 ft (2.5 to 3.5 m) high as a shrub or small tree with gray bark marked by lenticels running around the stems. The leaves are simple, glossy, and alternate with serrated margins and a few glands on the petiole or base of the blade. The inflorescence is a cylindrical raceme of showy white fragrant flowers appearing in early spring after the leaves have appeared. The fruit changes from a red to a dark purple drupe when ripe. It is the only edible part of the plant, having an astringent but sweet taste when ripe. Other members of the genus known to be toxic include Pin cherry (P. pennsylvanica) and wild black cherry (P. serotina).
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