mazzard

English

Alternative forms

• massard

Etymology

Probably a variant of mazard.

Noun

mazzard (plural mazzards)

1. A sweet cherry, Prunus avium, especially when used as rootstock.

   Coordinate terms: mahaleb cherry, morello

   • 1951, Leonard H. Day, Cherry rootstocks in California, Berkeley, Calif.: College of Agriculture, University of California, page 4:

     In California three rootstock species are in general use. From fairly reliable estimates, about 65 per cent of the cherries grown in the state are grafted on mazzard (Prunus avium); 30 per cent are on mahaleb (P. mahaleb); and 5 per cent on morello (P. cerasus).

Synonyms

• sweet cherry
• wild cherry

Further reading

• “mazzard”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–2022.