Which blossom tree??

Hi,
I would like a blossom tree for my small garden (aprox 16x30ft). I was thinking of some sort of cherry - but which one do i go for? Or are there any other blossoming trees anyone can suggest - my other thought is for an apple tree? I would prefer pink blossom over white and i do not mind too much on the kind of fruit produced, I just do not want anything poisonous as i have pet rabbits that run loose in the garden.

many thanks!

 

There are some pink blossoming cherries for small gardens that don't grow higher than 3 metres, e.g. Prunus subhirtella 'Pendula Rosea Plena', although it tends to fade in a week or so. There's ornamental peach, Prunus 'Windle Weeping', the loveliest tiny, pendulous tree I know of, with beautiful, compact, double, dark pink flowers. Then Prunus persica 'Roseoplena' or even the fancy, white-pink flowered 'Albaroseoplena' is another option, the former's deep purplish flowers are in striking contrast with the usually soft shades of the normal cherry blossoms. It takes some time and pruning to make their structure look different from other fruit trees, but might be worth it. There are the usual Prunuses as well, P. serrulata 'Royal Burgundy' and 'Pink Perfection' are a bit more unusual than the good old 'Kanzan'...

If you don't mind taller growing trees, there's Cercis, or the purple-leaved C. canadensis 'Forest Pansy' and a tiny weeping one called 'Lavender Covey'. If you give us some more clue as to the height and habit you'd like to see it'll be easier to suggest species and varieties.

 

Forgot to add: Naturally, 'Royal Burgundy' and 'Pink Perfection' grow to a similar height than 'Kanzan', so they'll be about 10 metres tall.

As a specimen tree, you might consider Prunus subhirtella 'Rosea Plena' as well but this one tends to fade as the bloom gets a bit older - after 5-7 days, depending on weather conditions.

 

Hi, thanks for your help! You've suggested a good selection for me to consider. I would like a tree that grows up to around 15ft. I would rather not have a weeping tree, nor one that grows in a very upright manner (excuse the descriptions but i do not know the correct terminology!). Opposite from me is a lovely blossom tree (not sure what it is) but it grows straight up and all the branches also grow in an upward direction, rather than growing outward. Does that make sense? I would like a tree that grows outward and upward so that it provides an area of shade in my garden in summer. Does all that make sense? I will google some pictures to explain what i mean if i don't make much sense!

 

I like the way these trees grow and the shape of them, although i'm not sure what type of cherry they are

 

[FONT=verdana,geneva]Ornamental Tree Topping[/FONT]

[FONT=verdana,geneva]All ornamental trees (not vines) are topped at 1.3 metres to encourage a natural ornamental tree shape with obvious exceptions e.g. patio sizes.This means that your tree was pruned during the growing process and then allowed to grow to the size it is now supplied at.
[/FONT]


WHAT DOES THE ABOVE MEAN? IT IS WRITTEN ON THE WEBSITE OF AN ONLINE TREE SUPPLIER BUT NOT SURE OF THE MEANING??

THANKS!

 

Hi there, most probably that's a columnar tree, and the widespread variety of
ornamental cherries is 'Amanogawa' with soft pink blossoms... There's Prunus hillieri 'Spire' as well, but it's far wider and is by no means a pink fluffy thing.

If you need a flowering tree that has a 'normal':hehe: tree-like shape but doesn't grow very tall, then from the above list the ornamental peaches are for you, although you'll have a distinct feeling they look more like fruit trees.

And why cherries? If you stick to them, that's ok, I do love them, but what about magnolias? They wouldn't grow that big and have a lot of lovely pink varieties, e.g. Leonard Messel is one of my favourites...

 

Um, the first one can be an almond tree or even a pale pink Cercis, most likely C. canadensis, C. siliquastrum has a definitely darker blossoms - except in the last few days of the blooming season.

The second tree is Prunus 'Kanzan', it's unmistakeable. It has an unattractive vase shape when young, so you have to make some effort to prune it very carefully and if you put some extra effort in its shape, you can weight and bind the young, still flexible branches just like a mega-bonsai.... :wink:

Instead of Kanzan, I might go for Royal Burgundy, to provide interest until late autumn, its purple foliage is much better to look at when it's not in bloom, that is, for the rest of the gardening season...

As for topping trees:
http://www.arborday.org/trees/ninenum1.cfm
http://www.seattlepi.com/dayart/20070618/Tree-Topping-0618.gif
http://www.bgky.org/tree/topping.php

But I should say they meant their trunk branches out in that height, and not that they chop half of the tree off...

 

Go for a crab apple Red Sentinel- excellent blossom followed by little apples throughout the winter which the thrushes and the redwings adored.

I cannot see the point of flowering cherries as its 2 weeks of blossom followed by what?

 

In autumn the best ones (my favourite is the latest flowering Mt. Fuji/Shirotae) produce such a spectacular display of rainbow-coloured foliage that you forgive them practically anything. :p I don't think there's a sensible explanation for the love of cherry blossoms - if you google 'Hanami' you might get an idea but I'm really partial in that and just love Japanese gardens...

Speaking of cherries, there's Prunus sargentii 'Accolade', which won't grow too big but its crown spreads quite nicely after the first five years, and is about to flower in some days now... :luv:

 

I must say, I do think the cherry trees look beautiful! I have recently found out that cherry trees would be poisonous to my beloved bunnies, so i'm not so sure i can have one :dh:
I think that an apple would be a safe bet, but crab apple would give them digestive problems if eaten so the crab apple is out im afraid Has Bean!
Sorry you have spent time on the cherries, you've been very informative and i do appreciate the help! And had i chosen a cherry i would have gone for the Royal Burgandy - i agree that the foliage is lovely and rather unusual. Can you possibly recommend a smallish apple tree I could go for? Any with pink blossom?