BLOOMING LOVELY: The winner of the 2008 B.C. Blossom Photo Contest, taken by Shirley Man. (www.vcbf.ca)
No less than 36,000 ornamental cherry trees are set to bloom in 25 Vancouver neighbourhoods between now and May, delighting the city’s many cherry blossom lovers.
“I think it’s very easy for anyone to love cherry trees. I was a paper delivery boy and I got to see cherry trees during sunrise, and it’s very poetic for me,” says botanist Douglas Justice.
Justice is associate director and curator of collections at the University of British Columbia’s Botanical Garden. He says his “love affair” with ornamental cherry trees began when he was a child.
“My father grew a cherry tree in the front yard and one in the backyard. The one in the back yard is called ‘Daybreak,’ but the actual name of the tree is Akebono, and that flower is one of the most common in Vancouver. My other cherry tree was called Shirotae, and Shirotae is almost always flowering on my birthday.”
It was the beauty of cherry blossoms that inspired Justice to write Ornamental Cherries in Vancouver, a guide to the 35 varieties of cherry trees in the city, all of which bloom at different times.
Ornamental cherries are most common in Japan, the British Isles, and the west coast of North America, because the moist climate in these regions suits them. Japan alone has hundreds of varieties. While most only live about 50 years, there are cherry trees in Japan that are much older, Justice says.
“In Japan in temples there are trees that are many hundreds of years old. But these trees have an army of monks taking care of them.”
One of the most popular species is Kanzan, which has long-lasting flowers and blooms at the end of April and into May.
“Kanzan produces very large bright pink flowers that look like a powder puff … It’s widely planted in Vancouver and people love it because the trees look patched in the middle and you feel cuddled while driving through.”
One of Justice’s favourites is Birch Bark, of which there are only a few in Vancouver.
“It’s grown not for its flowers but its bark—it’s like polished. … I think it’s special because it’s unusual and it has beautiful bark. It’s not very widely planted because the flower isn’t very nice compared to others.”
Justice says the best time to distinguish the difference between species is when the trees are blossoming. Therefore at the fourth annual Vancouver Cherry Blossom Festival that runs from March 28 to April 24, he will assume the role of technical advisor, demonstrating the intricate dissimilarities between the flowers that to the untrained eye are hard to detect.
The month-long festival includes a cherry blossom photo contest, a haiku contest, a Cherry Jam, tree talks and walks, outdoor canvas painting lessons, and Bike the Blossom at the VanDusen Botanical Garden.
To see a map of the cherry blossoms, visit: http://www.vcbf.ca/map
