Grafted Kwanzan Japanese cherry (prunus serrulata)

The ‘Kanzan’ cherry tree (sometimes spelled ‘Kwanzan’, especially in English) is a Japanese ornamental cherry tree 🌸, spectacular in spring and very popular in parks and gardens.

🌸 ‘Kwanzan’ cherry tree (Prunus serrulata ‘Kwanzan’)
🔎 Identity

• Scientific name: Prunus serrulata ‘Kanzan’
• Family: Rosaceae
• Origin: Japanese horticultural selection
• Type: Spring-flowering ornamental tree

🌳 Size & Habit

• Height: 6 to 10 m
• Spread: 5 to 8 m
• Habit: initially upright (V-shaped), then more spreading with age
• Moderately fast growth

🌸 Flowering

• Period: April to early May (depending on climate)
• Flowers: double, bright pink to soft pink, very dense
• Visual effect: spectacular—the tree appears to be covered in pink pom-poms
• Special feature: sterile—does not produce fruit

🍂 Foliage

• Young foliage is bronze/coppery, turning green in summer
• Fall: pretty shades of yellow, orange, sometimes red
• Deciduous: loses its leaves in winter

❄️ Hardiness

• Zone: 5 to 8
• Withstands temperatures down to about -23°C
• Cold-hardy, but sensitive to late frosts during flowering

🌱 Cultivation

• Exposure: full sun
• Soil: rich, well-drained, fairly neutral to slightly acidic
• Tolerance: resistant to urban pollution, but does not like heavy, waterlogged soils
• Care:
  • Minimal pruning, just to remove dead wood
  • Susceptible to certain diseases (e.g., monilia, canker, aphids), but nothing alarming if the tree is well cared for

✅ Ornamental interest

• 🌸 Spectacular flowering
• 🍁 Beautiful fall foliage
• 🌳 Graceful habit
• Ideal as a specimen tree, in a row, or in a Japanese garden

❌ Disadvantages

• No fruit (or very rarely, inedible)
• Fairly short-lived for a tree (20 to 30 years on average)
• Somewhat susceptible to disease if the climate is too humid

📍 Note

The ‘Kanzan’ cherry tree is widely used in cherry blossom festivals (Hanami), particularly in the United States, Canada, and Japanese gardens in Europe.