Well, it isn't poison ivy or poison oak. If you were here in NJ I'd say they were mulberry seedlings, but I'm not familiar enough with Texas plants say that's what it really is. There are other plants that can cause problems in people that are sensitive to them, maybe your wife is just unlucky (or lucky, since you're now the one doing the weeding.) Poison ivy always has leaves with 3 parts; poison oak is similar but the leaves are more rounded; we don't have it up here in the northeast, don't know if you'd have it in Texas. Poison ivy is pretty variable, but what is in your picture is not it. Your bushes are azaleas. WW Here is a link that might be useful: This IS poison ivy

In my experience, Evans/Bali is a great cherry for folks in zones 5 & colder - but if you're in zone 6 or warmer, don't bother with it. Photos konrad has posted from his zone 4 setting make it look phenomenal! Have had it here for nearly 20 years (finally pulled it out a year or so back, but there are still a couple of suckers that popped up 30-40 ft away). Yes, it ripens later than Montmorency, but that just allows more time for curculio and other pests to hit it, and it was never as productive as Montmorency. Don't know that I ever saw more than a half-dozen fruits that were worth bothering to pick, and they weren't nearly as plump and tasty as those from the nearby Montmorency. Grew out some row-run Nanking seedlings a number of years back - I'd purchased them for use as dwarfing rootstocks for plums - tiny little fruits with minimal pulp surrounding the pit. Native P.serotina(black cherry) produces larger fruits with more pulp. Maybe I had a less-than-stellar strain, but my impression was, "Why bother with it?" Kinda made me think maybe these bush cherries were for folks in the frigid northland who don't have enough growing degree days to grow a real fruit (tic). lol

Tina, I don't have my tree/shrub book in front of me(Pirrone) - I keep it at the library. But I want to say that your shrub is a Purple Sand Cherry and the insect that chews the holes is a wasp. I treat trees and shrubs and do not really have control over this problem. I also see it on Newport Plum - similar tree. It really is more of a cosmetic problem and will not kill the shrub like the borers that it OFTEN gets. A similar shrub I recommend as a replacement for Sand Cherries is a Diablo Ninebark - so far NO insects or diseases. So I really wouldn't worry about it- your shrub should be fine.

Gardengal: The fruit was deep red and soft = ready. They weren't sweet with a bit of tartness/sourness -- they were sour. Funny, though -- I planted a serviceberry as a replacement multi-trunk small tree next to the patio, liked that it flowers, is native, and provides food for the wildlife -- from what I've heard the birds go cuckoo over the berries. Well, no birds but I ended up eating the berries right off the tree myself - they're quite tasty! Absolutely no effort on my part and a nice surprise -- ironic since I wasn't even trying. Kind of makes up for the bummer cherries. :0)