Nanking cherry seems to struggle in dense soils with limited water. These are not ideal conditions for most fruit trees or shrubs but few if any seem to struggle more than Nanking cherry. Other fruit trees and bushes seem to easily (or otherwise marginally) outgrow and often outproduce Nanking cherry in less than ideal soil and water conditions.

Even so, Nanking cherry can produce a modest, flavorful, blueberry size cherry very early in the season, ahead of the ripening dates for the vast majority of other fruit crops.