Ornamental cherries, or sakura, have become a big hit in Czech gardens and public spaces in recent years. How to grow them?
Japanese tradition and sakura festival Hanami
When we think of spring, most of us imagine the incredible flood of pink and white flowers in an orchard. We are waiting for the apple, cherry and plum trees to finally bloom. Some very distinctive and beautifully blooming cherries are also planted in streets, parks, but also around parking lots. These are mainly ornamental cherries or sakura.
In recent years, they have also been a huge hit in our country, and it’s no wonder. When they bloom, it’s the biggest show you can have in your garden. Don’t expect any pies from them, but the view will more than make up for it.
In Japan, these trees are literally a national treasure, and their flowering is the event of the year. The Japanese even have a special expression for observing flowers Hanami and it is also a sign cherry blossom festival. For the Japanese, it is a symbol of a new beginning, but it is also a reminder that everything beautiful lasts only a moment.
If you’d like to go straight to the source, the best time to travel to Japan tends to be late March and early April, when the entire islands are covered in a pink haze and people are watching the bloom forecast on TV as intently as we are watching the weather reports here.
Do you want them too? Feel free to do it. A short post from the spa park in Poděbrady proves that cherry blossoms are thriving here too.
Which sakura to buy and what will surprise you
Even if we can’t fly to Tokyo right away, we can have a piece of this exotic at home, because the sakura trees are doing extremely well here. There are a number of them and they differ mainly in how they grow.
Sakura Kanzan is probably the best known and most popular because it has full and deep pink flowers that look like little roses.
Sakura Amanogawa it will be great for those who struggle with space, as it grows strictly columnar upwards and takes up almost nothing in width, so it will fit in even the smallest front garden.
Overhanging forms or Kiku-shidare they look amazing by ponds or in the middle of the lawn, as their branches fall like a pink waterfall to the ground.
How to grow ornamental cherries and what to expect from them
Growing sakura is not an advanced science and even a beginner can do it if he follows a few basic rules that ornamental cherries simply require.
- Choose a sunny location for thembecause in the shade they simply won’t bloom as richly and the colors won’t be expressive.
- Provide them with permeable soilwhich is sufficiently nutritious and calcareous, i.e. rather . Sakuras do not tolerate waterlogging, then their roots begin to rot and the tree withers.
- Be very careful with the cutthe best thing to do is to let them grow freely, and if you have to cut, do it in the summer after flowering.
- Be aware that sakura do not bear fruit. Some varieties may have small, bad cherries that are not suitable for consumption.
- Mulch the young trees properly. This will help the tree retain moisture and protect it at the same time.
People are sometimes shocked when the sakura bloom and start to sprout leaves, which in many species are first bronze or red and then turn green, but that’s perfectly fine and part of their charm. The bark of trees can also be darker. Sakura is a very beautiful tree and often regular in its height and crown.
As for pests, they can sometimes appear on them, as well as on classic cherries. The elimination of pests is also similar.
If you let the trees rest and don’t keep digging around them, they will bring you joy for decades, and every spring you will have a piece of Japanese beauty in your garden.
