Ovate (egg-shaped, wider toward the base) leaves that are toothed, spinose. Leaves ~2-5 cm long, on a short petiole, very sclerophyllous, almost crispy, and glabrous to the point of shiny, dark green on top and lighter green underneath. Leaf veining is pinnate, branching off from the midrib axis. Leaf margin is wavy, sharply spinose, very much like a holly. If you crush the leaves, they have an almond-like smell. Flowers are small with 5 white petals ~2-3 mm long, many stamens surrounding a single yellow pistil. The flowers can be dense or sparse, borne along racemes (spikes with flowers branching off it) about 3-6 cm long coming out of leaf axils. Blooms from April to May. The fruit is a red to blue-black drupe, a cherry, ~1.2-1.8 cm across. The cherry is safe to eat and sweet, but the flesh is so thin around the stone that it's not quite worth the bother! The pits, however, are toxic. The plant forms a dense shrub from 1-8 m tall, sometimes resembling a small tree, with grey or reddish-brown stems and twigs. Found in chaparral and foothill woodlands in the coastal mountain ranges of California from Northern California into Baja California.
Prunus ilicifolia aka P. ilicifolia subsp. ilicifolia (Rosaceae): hollyleaf cherry or evergreen cherry or islay
The development of this key was partially funded through the Geoscience Diversity Enhancement Program (Award #0703798) and through a course of re-assigned time provided by the CSULB Scholarly and Creative Activities Committee. Thanks also to the students in sections of biogeography, introductory physical geography, GDEP, and LSAMP for "test-driving" various editions of this key.