The Manchurian Cherry is native to north-east China, Siberia and Korea. It was introduced to Britain in 1910. It was ‘discovered’ by Richard Maack and registered in 1857. It has white flowers that resemble those of the Bird Cherry. It is valued for its beautiful bark, honey-brown when young and red-brown when older. It was rare but can now be found in urban areas and can be confused with other white flowered cherries in spring.

The flowers emerge with the leaves in mid April. The white flowers are on 7 cm long spikes similar to the Bird Cherry but unlike other Cherries.

The bark is honey-brown and glossy and has horizontal lenticel bands. The tree is prized for its beautiful bark.

Snowy Mespil identification – The Snowy Mespil, also known as the Juneberry, Snowy Mespilus or Serviceberry, is a deciduous shrub or small tree, originally from North America but now growing wild in Europe, including Britain. It is an ornamental tree planted widely in gardens for its delicate white flowers in early spring, red fruit in midsummer and red leaves in autumn. Amelanchier is a genus of up to 20 species. The fruit is very sweet when fully ripe. In North America Juneberry fruit is harvested in June or July and eaten as berries or converted to jams, jellies and wine. The fruit is also popular with birds.

Snowy Mespil identification is by its leaves, white flowers in spring, red fruit in autumn and long, beech-like buds in winter.

Leaves are oval, parallel-sided and toothed

Buds are coppery and long, like a Beech

Cherry blossom in Europe is usually taken to include those cherry trees that have white or pink flowers in spring and are in the genus Prunus. Known as Ornamental Cherries they include the spectacular Japanese Flowering Cherries but also many other species and varieties that are available through garden centres and nurseries. The flowering season lasts 8 weeks from late March to early May with each species or variety flowering for two to three weeks. The majority flower in April. Dates when photos were taken are shown. Click on any photo to enlarge it.

The Wild Cherry cultivar ‘Plena’ has white ‘double’ flowers. Each flower has up to 30 petals.

Japanese Flowering Cherries are a large group of cultivars that were bred in Japan from the 15th Century and were known collectively as Sato Zakura (village cherries). Their taxonomic origin is unclear but one of their parents is believed to be the Japanese Cherry (Prunus serrulata), native to northern and central China, Korea and Japan. The flowering cherries were introduced to Britain as early as 1822. They bear white or pink flowers in spring. There are more than 20 cultivars on sale in Britain. Some examples are shown here.

‘Amanogawa’ has ‘semi-double’ pale pink flowers.

‘Ichiyo’ has beautiful ‘double’ pale pink flowers. Mid April.

‘Shogetsu’ has ‘double ‘ pure white flowers.  End April

Tibetan Cherry Prunus serrula has small white ‘single’ flowers.  Late April. Planted mainly for its polished mahogany-like red-brown bark. 

Two trees come into flower at the same time  in early spring. The Common Pear has white flowers and the Norway Maple has green flowers. Viewed from a distance one tree looks white and the other green.

The Norway Maple is native to Europe, from Scandinavia to the Caucasus. It was introduced to Britain in 1683 and is now commonly found in gardens, streets and parks. It is one of the first trees to look green in spring, when its green flowers open before the leaves. It has the 5-lobed leaf typical of the Maple family but differs from the Field Maple and Sycamore in that its lobes and teeth have finely pointed tips. It has a winged fruit like all maples but the wings hang down at an angle whereas on the Field Maple they are flat.

The tree is one of the first trees to go green in spring but not with new leaves. Green flowers appear before the leaves and give the tree a green appearance in March or early April. The flower clusters burst out of the bud before the leaves.

Young tree bark.

Magnolia trees and shrubs are members of a very large genus containing between 120 and 230 species depending on the classification system used. The genus is named after the French botanist Pierre Magnol. It is an ancient genus with ‘primitive’ flowers adapted for pollination by beetles. The petals, for example, are known as tepals because the sepals and petals are indistinguishable. This is a feature common to plants that appeared early on in the evolution of Flowering Plants. Magnolias are important horticulturally. They are now sold worldwide and many new varieties have been developed. They are grown for their beautiful flowers and their striking foliage.

Magnolia trees and shrubs identification by flowers and leaves. Two common Magnolias, the Saucer Magnolia and Star Magnolia flower in Spring and the Southern Evergreen Magnolia flowers from midsummer. 

The Southern Evergreen Magnolia Magnolia grandiflora, also known as the Southern Magnolia or Bull Bay, is a large evergreen tree native to Southeastern USA. It was introduced to Britain in 1734. It is now common in warmer parts of Britain, where it was originally grown against south-facing walls. It has large, dark green leaves and beautiful white flowers.

Each Southern Evergreen Magnolia flower  has 9 to 16 white tepals. They surround the yellow anthers and styles of the sexual parts of the flower. Flowers start to appear in midsummer and continue to appear until late autumn. Photo taken in July

The Southern Evergreen Magnolia leaves are large, glossy and bright green when young.