Yoshino Flowering Cherry

Botanical Name: Prunus x yedoensis ‘Yoshino’

Alternate Name: Yoshino Cherry Tree

The Yoshino Flowering Cherry (Prunus x yedoensis ‘Yoshino’) is an elegant tree that puts on a stunning display of very pale pink or white flowers in spring. This cherry tree is a small to medium sized, deciduous, ornamental tree with a broad, rounded, and open crown. It grows to a height of 30-40 feet with a spread of 30-40 feet.

The leaves of the Yoshino Cherry tree appear when the tree blooms or just after the flower display. They are dark green and elliptically shaped with serrate margins. The foliage turns shades of bright yellow and golden orange in the fall.

The blooms arrive in early spring, brightly covering the twigs and branches. They provide a magnificent display with clusters made up of 3 to 6 flowers. The flowers of the Yoshino Cherry tree bloom from pink buds. They are white or slightly tinged with pink, fading to white as they mature. They are lightly fragrant and single with 5-petals. 

Following the blooms are small, rounded, black cherries. These are not palatable to humans because of their bitterness but are adored by birds. This flowering cherry tree is also attractive to butterflies.