Amateur Gardening – 21 May 2019

22 AMATEUR GARDENING11 MAY 2019

Pick of the very best

̈

Graham Rice chooses his six top RHS Award of Garden Merit winners

Flowering cherries

This week it’s

Whoneedsediblefruitwhenyou’vegottreesburstingwithblossom?Withno

shortageofcontenders,GrahamRicepicksthetopornamentalcherries

Witha greatall-rounderlike‘Accolade’

youcanenjoybrilliantblossomin spring,

as well as great autumn leaf colour

MailOrderTrees mailordertrees.co.uk 08000665972

MajesticTrees majestictrees.co.uk 01582843881

Ornamental Trees ornamental-trees.co.uk 01943 660870

Where to buy

A

LLovertheworld,the

explosionsof springcolour

broughttousbyflowering

cherriesarelegendary.

Picnickingbeneathfloweringcherry

treeshasbeena traditionin Japansince

the8thcentury,whilein theUSthere’s

anannualNationalCherryBlossom

FestivalfocusedonWashingtonDC.

Herein Britain,aftertheendof the

SecondWorldWarthequaintlynamed

RoadsBeautifyingAssociationplanted

floweringcherriesalongourroadsides

tohelpbringa new air of optimism to

post-Warlife.

It’snothardtoseewhytheselovely

trees are so valued. Their clouds of

blossomappearreliablyeveryspring–

whatevertheweather– varyingfrom

simple,single,five-petalledflowersto

fullydoubleonescrowdedwithpetals.

In colour,theyrangefromred,through

deeppink,towhite,manyfeaturingdark

budsthatopenpaler.Andthemore

double the flowers, the longer they last.

Manageablesize

It’snotjustaboutblossom,though.

Floweringcherriesalsohavethegreat

advantageof nevergrowingtothesize

of horsechestnuts,makingthemideal

forsmallergardens.Theycomein a

varietyof formstosuiteverysituation:

tall and upright, rounded or elegantly

weeping.They’readaptableandeasyto

growandarehappyin a varietyof soils.

Manyalsofeaturefieryautumncolour,

somehaveattractivelycolouredspring

foliageanda fewhavelovelybark.

Somealsoproducefruitthatbirdswill

appreciate.Thebronzedyoungleavesof

AGMwinnerPrunussargentii‘Charles

Sargent’turnto fieryredin autumn,while

Prunuscerasifera‘Pissardii’hasdarkred

youngleavesthatmatureto purple.Then

thereisPrunuscerasifera‘Nigra’.Withits

dark,almostblackfoliageit canbea little

oppressivein a smallspace,butit is

undeniablyimpressivefroma distance.

Whenchoosing,therearetwoother

thingstokeepin mind.Firstis longevity.

Mostof thosecherriesplantedbythe

RoadsBeautifyingAssociationin the

’40sand’50sarelonggone.It’ssaidthat

30 yearsis thelifeof a floweringcherry,

andtherecomesa pointwhentheystart

todeclineandarebestremoved.

Second, they are not the cheapest of

All photographs Alamy and TI Media unless otherwise credited