Cerasus yedoensis

Prunus × yedoensis, Prunus × yedoensis 'Somei-yoshino' or Yoshino cherry (Japanese: 染井吉野 Somei Yoshino) (synonym Cerasus × yedoensis) is a hybrid cherry of between Prunus speciosa (Oshima zakura) as father plant and Prunus pendula f. ascendens (Edo higan) as mother. It occurs as a natural or artificial hybrid in Japan and is now one of the most popular and widely planted cultivated flowering cherries (sakura) in temperate climates worldwide. It is a clone from a single tree and propagated by grafting to all over the world. Yoshino cherry is initially believed to be native to Yoshino District, Nara. In 1900, Kimei Fujino gave Yoshino cherry the name Somei-yoshino after the famous place of cultivation Somei village (current day Toshima). In 1901, Yoshino cherry was given a scientific name Prunus yedoensis by Jinzō Matsumura. However, after Ernest Henry Wilson suggested Yoshino cherry is a hybrid between Prunus subhirtella var. ascendens (Edo higan) and Prunus lannesiana (Oshima zakura) in 1916, Yoshino cherry became to be called Prunus × yedoensis. As for the Korean native cherry called King cherry which was given a scientific name Prunus yedoensis var. nudiflora by a German botanist Bernhard Adalbert Emil Koehne in 1912 continues to be called Prunus yedoensis. Yoshino cherry has no scientific cultivar name because it is the original cultivar of this hybrid species Prunus × yedoensis. A new name, 'Somei-yoshino' is proposed in accordance with other cultivars of Prunus × yedoensis. Prunus × yedoensis is a small, deciduous tree that at maturity grows to be 5 to 12 metres (16–39 ft) (rarely 15 metres (49 ft)) tall. It grows well in hardiness zones 5–8 and does well in full sun and moist but well drained soil. The leaves are alternately arranged, 6 to 15 centimetres (2.4–5.9 in) long and 4 to 7 centimetres (1.6–2.8 in) broad, with a serrated margin; they are often bronze-toned when newly emerged, becoming dark green by summer. The flowers emerge before the leaves in early spring; they are fragrant, 3 to 3.5 centimetres (1.2–1.4 in) in diameter, with five white or pale pink petals. The flowers grow in clusters of five or six together. The fruit, a small cherry, is a globose drupe 8 to 10 millimetres (0.31–0.39 in) in diameter; they are an important source of food for many small birds and mammals, including robins and thrushes. The fruit contain little flesh and much concentrated red juice, which can stain clothing and brick. The fruit is only marginally sweet to the human palate. With its fragrant, light pink flowers, manageable size, and elegant shape, the Yoshino cherry is often used as an ornamental tree. Many cultivars have been selected; notable examples include 'Akebono', 'Ivensii', and 'Shidare Yoshino'. From the Edo period to the beginning of the Meiji period, gardeners and craftsman who made the village at Somei in Edo (now Komagome, Toshima ward, Tokyo) grew someiyoshino. They first offered them as Yoshinozakura, but in 1900, they were renamed someiyoshino by Dr. Fujino. This is sometimes rendered as 'Somei-Yoshino'.