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Botanical Name: Prunus 'Kwanzan'
Common Name: Kwanzan Cherry
Origin: Garden Origin
Locations:CNW, CSE, KS
Notable Feature: An outstanding, brilliantly colored, spring flowering tree. As the leaves begin to emerge, the tree sheds its flowers, creating a rainstorm of swirling pink petals as they fall to the ground.
Habit: A small, deciduous tree reaching 25 to 30 feet high and wide, usually with a vase-shaped, spreading crown.
Flower: Very showy, deep pink, double, 2 ½” in diameter and occur in large clusters along the stem in early spring. Flowering is profuse in full sun. The perfect (bisexual) flowers bloom just before and as the leaves emerge.
Fruit: The cultivar ‘Kwanzan’ is sterile and does not produce fruit.
Foliage: Alternate, lanceolate to ovate in shape, 3 to 5” long with serrated margins. Shiny dark green above and light green below, with obvious glands on the petioles (leaf stems). New leaves are a bronzy green and in fall leaves may turn a good orange-bronze.
Interesting Fact: In 1912 the people of Japan donated 12 different varieties of flowering cherry trees to the U.S. for planting in Washington, D.C. From that original donation, the Yoshino cherry was planted in the Tidal Basin area and the Kwanzan cherry was planted in the East Potomac Park area. Tends to be short-lived since it is susceptible to many insect and disease problems.