Amateur Gardening – 21 May 2019

11 MAY 2019AmAteur GArDeNING 23

theAwardofGardenmeritisa markofquality

awardedsince 1922 togardenplants(includingtrees,vegetablesand

decorative plants) by the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS).

Prunusavium‘Plena’

Anexceptionaldouble-floweredform

of ournativewildcherry,withbranches

coveredin long-lasting,purewhite

doubleflowersin April.Prolificand

breathtakingin fullblossom,it also

featuressmallredfruitsandcrimson

autumn foliage. H: 26ft (8m).

Prunus‘Accolade’

Bringstogethertwooldfavourites:

thewintercherryandPrunus

sargentiiwithitsexceptional

autumncolour.Crowdedclusters

of semi-double,palepinkflowers

aresuspendedfromthebranches

in early spring. H: 20ft (6m).

Prunus‘Hokusai’

Oneof thefirstJapanesecherriesto

begrownin Britain– andstilloneof the

best– thiselegantlyspreadingtreeis

clothedin generousclustersof semi-

doubleflowersin April.Palepink,the

bloomslooklovelyagainstthe bronzed

young foliage. H: 23ft (7m).

Prunus‘Spire’

Anexceptionalsmalltreethatis

noticeablynarrowerthanit is tall.The

bronzedspringfoliageoverlapswith

prettypinkbuds,whichopentowhite

flowers;thesearefollowedin autumn

byorangeandambertints.Ideal in

small spaces. H: 20ft (6m).

Prunusincisa‘Kojo-no-mai’

Verydistinct,smallandslow-growing,

thisMarch-floweringshrubhasstriking

zigzagbrancheslinedwithpalepink

flowersthatfadetoblushedwhiteas

theymature.Thenewleavesare

bronzed,whilein autumnthe foliage

turns fiery. H: 6½ft (2m).

trees.Yourchosenvarietywillhavebeen

graftedontoa robustrootstockandthen

lookedafterat thenurseryfora few

yearsbeforeit’sreadytosell,which

tendstobumpupthecost.Thegood

newsis that,onceyougetit home,the

treewillburstintoblossom in its first

spring in your garden.

Prolificflowering Fragrance

Alongfloweringseason

Colourfulautumnfoliage

Colourful spring foliage

What makes a good flowering cherry?

Goodavailability

Robustconstitution

Modestsize

Upright or relatively narrow growth

Prunus‘Shizuka’
Sometimesknownas‘FragrantCloud’.
Copperynewleavesoverlapwith
vanilla-scented,semi-double,pure
whiteflowersin lateAprilandMay,
thelatterdevelopinga pinkeyeover
time.Goodautumnleafcolourand
upright growth. H: 16ft (5m).