Cherry Blossoms Trees

It’s cherry blossom blooming season in the Chesapeake Bay Region.  The cherry blossom tree Is celebrated for its blossoms, beauty and color. The cherry blossom, also known as “sakura” in Japan, is the flower of the cherry tree, and in many countries around the world has come to symbolize the transition from winter to spring.

These flowers are native to Asia but currently prevalent throughout temperate zones of the Northern Hemisphere.

Species of cherry trees are categorized by their fruit or blossoms. There are sweet cherries, sour cherries, and ornamental cherry blossom trees.

Cherry blossom season lasts for about a month every spring and is always weather dependent. Early March to early April is generally a good rule of thumb. Most ornamental cherry trees are bred more for the lovely blossoms than the edible fruit. 

Types of Ornamental Cherry Trees

Many species of cherry trees are grown for their beautiful spring blossoms. There are many different varieties of blossoming trees and we break down those for you.

• The Weeping Higan Cherry has cascading light-pink to rose-pink flowers and their branches spill downwards.  They bloom from mid-March to early April.
• The Yoshino Cherry are the popular trees surrounding the Tidal Basin in Washington, DC.  They produce the stunning white flowers admired by visitors, blooms from mid- to late-March to mid-April.
• Kwanzan Cherry is a strong tree with blooms that look like carnations. Their flowers bloom late, mid-to-late spring.
• Okame Cherry, also known as the Taiwan cherry, have a deep pink flower and grow to 20 feet tall. They can be early bloomers, sometimes blossoming around Valentine's Day in the Lower South.
• Last to bloom is the Japanese Flowering Cherry which produces double-flowered pink blooms in April.
• Dwarf Fuji cherry blossom trees are small shrub-like trees that have breathtaking whitish-pink blossoms.  This tree is also small enough to grow in containers on a balcony or patio.
• The dwarf snow fountain weeping cherry blossom tree has cascading branches covered in clusters of beautiful white flowers. The fragrant cherry blossoms appear in mid-spring and bloom for three weeks.

Types of Cherry Trees

• Wild Cherry Tree is an indigenous North American tree which will grow to between 60-90 feet tall with lightly serrated, shiny, dark green leaves.  The cherries on these wild cherry tree can be very poisonous.
• Sour Cherry trees, differing to their counterpart cherries, produce smaller and pleasantly tart fruits that do not require much cold to produce The tree provides beautiful white blossoms and an abundance of fruit. The fruit ripens in the Summer, becoming dark red and tart.
• Stella Cherry Tree self-pollinate to yield juicy, delicious dark red fruit. 
• Black Cherry Tree is an attractive deciduous tree that reaches heights of 50 to 80 feet.  Black cherry fruits are an important source of food for major wildlife species.

Happy Spring!