10 Types of Ornamental Cherry Trees

Every spring, more than a million visitors flock to Washington, D.C., to see thousands of flowering cherry trees in bloom at the National Cherry Blossom Festival. First held in 1934, this event commemorates a 1912 gift of cherry trees from the mayor of Tokyo to the US capital. Today, more than 3,700 ornamental cherry trees in several varieties grace the city, including Yoshino cherry trees, Kwanzan cherry trees and weeping cherry trees.

If you want to bring the beauty of the National Cherry Blossom Festival home, get to know these types of flowering cherry trees and consider planting one or more in your yard. They’ll add a brilliant splash of color in the spring with their white to deep pink blooms, and some varieties offer great fall color as well. Cherry trees can grow in USDA Zones 5 to 8 (or 5 to 9 in the West), and most types reach 20 to 30 feet in height. Be sure to choose one that will thrive in your location and landscape.

In 1912, Japan gifted Washington, D.C., 12 different types of cherry trees; today, the Yoshino is one the most prevalent in D.C., numbering around 2,600, or 70% of all cherry trees. They’re distinguished by clusters of single white blossoms, creating a cotton-ball effect, with the showstopping majority located along the Tidal Basin. This variety is beloved in Japan, and its flowers emit a pleasant almond scent.

Besides Yoshino, Kwanzan is the other popular variety you’ll find in D.C., and 414 dominate in East Potomac Park alone. Named after a Japanese mountain, it blooms about two weeks after the Yoshino, and its pink double blossoms almost resemble carnations.

The Akebono blooms about the same time as the Yoshino; more than 100 Akebono trees are interspersed mostly among the Yoshino trees in the Tidal Basin, with a few in East Potomac Park. Look for them near the John Ericsson Memorial. The pale pink Akebono cherries are actually a mutation of the Yoshino and were cultivated in 1920.

Interestingly, there are only two Afterglow trees, both in East Potomac Park, and even though they hardly represent in D.C., in terms of popularity they’re actually replacing Akebono trees in the nursery scene. That’s because unlike Akebono, the Afterglow’s blossoms are a darker pink that doesn’t fade.

Most of these, about 100, congregate on the Washington Monument grounds, with a handful located in East Potomac Park. Despite the name, the Autumn Flowering tree actually blooms year-round.

Head to East Potomac Park and Tidal Basin to admire about 100 Weeping Cherry trees, which are found among the Yoshino, Akebono and Kwanzan trees. Unlike other cherry trees, the droopy Weeping Cherry’s flowers can range from white to dark pink and possess single or double blossoms. Note that they bloom about a week before the Yoshino trees.

Look for the 21 Sargents, identified by their single petal, deep-pink blossom clusters, in East Potomac Park and Tidal Basin.

Tidal Basin is home to 14 Fugenzo trees, which possess rose-colored clusters that lighten with age. It’s one of the oldest cultivated cherry trees in Japan, and former First Lady Helen Herron Taft is believed to have planted the first one in D.C.

Currently, there are 3,770 cherry trees in D.C. and only one lone Okame tree. Its small, bright pink flowers can be found in East Potomac Park and it is usually the first tree to blossom.