🌸 Flower Color: Pure white, fragrant clusters (8–20 mm across)
🌳 Plant Type: Deciduous tree / large shrub
🍒 Fruit: Small dark cherries (8–10 mm), thin flesh, very bitter
🌍 Origin: Mediterranean, Central Asia, Iran, Southeastern Europe
The leaves are small, ovate to heart-shaped, bright green with serrated edges. In mid-spring, the tree bursts into clouds of sweetly scented blossoms that attract bees and other pollinators. By summer, the small black-purple cherries appear, each containing a fragrant seed that holds the prized spice known as mahlab.
Prunus mahaleb grows naturally in open woodlands, dry slopes, and rocky hillsides. It thrives in well-drained soils and tolerates poor, limestone-rich conditions. Hardy to -20°C (USDA zone 5), it can adapt to both wild landscapes and garden settings.
The species plays an ecological role in its native environment, with birds such as blackbirds and blackcaps dispersing the seeds after eating the fruit, ensuring the tree’s regeneration.
The aromatic seeds of Prunus mahaleb are ground into a fine spice known as mahlab, which has been used since antiquity in Greek, Turkish, and Middle Eastern pastries such as tsoureki, çörek, and chorak. The flavor is reminiscent of bitter almond and cherry, lending a rich aroma to baked goods and desserts.
🌿 Other Uses:
The hard, fine-grained wood is used in pipe-making and fine carpentry.
The bark and seeds contain coumarin, with mild sedative and anti-inflammatory properties.
Popular as an ornamental tree, with cultivars such as ‘Pendula’, ‘Globosa’, and ‘Xanthocarpa’ for landscaping.
Dating back to ancient Sumerian texts, the Mahaleb Cherry was valued as a sacred and medicinal tree, linked to the goddess Inanna. In Arabic and medieval botany, mahlab was praised for its fragrance, vigor, and therapeutic value. From 12th-century Andalusian farmers to Ottoman bakers, its story has traveled across time and cultures.
Today, its cultivation is still maintained in Syria, Turkey, Greece, and the Balkans, preserving a tradition that’s thousands of years old.
Pretreatment: Scarify seeds and soak in warm water for 24 hours.
Stratification: Cold treatment for 90–120 days at +4°C.
Sowing Time: Spring after stratification.
Location: Sunny, well-drained soil.
Watering: Moderate; avoid waterlogging.
Germination: 2–3 months under suitable conditions.
🌿 Fruit Tree Seeds
🌸 Mediterranean Plants
🍞 Spice & Aromatic Seeds
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| Type of Delivery | Processing Time | Insured | Possible Delays | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Standard | 7–10 business days | ❌ | 7–14 days | Basic shipping option |
| Priority | 1–7 business days | ❌ | 3–10 days | Faster processing, not faster shipping |
| Insured | 1–7 business days | ✅ | 3–10 days | Refund if the package is lost (up to €150) |
🕒 Estimated Delivery Time:
Within the EU: 3–20 days
Worldwide: 5–30 days
Example delivery times to the USA: 27, 22, 19, 17, 13 days
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