When Jen and I came back from Tokyo, I went into our small village and discovered we had our own Sakura. A Prunus Kanzan or a flowering cherry is standing next to the river Arrow just beside our bridge. It was cultivated during the Edo period in Japan because of its attractive pink blossoms. The Edo period is from 1603 to 1868, and is characterised by stability. Japan was ruled by the Tokugawa shogunate and several large cities were developed during this period including Edo (present day Tokyo). So we had our own exponent of Sakura developed by the Japanese for its beauty.
And even at Lynch Court
And at home at Lynch Court we were not to be outdone! We didn’t have any true sakura trees, but when we left for Japan our only magnolia tree showed off its buds and the best of the tree was seen while we were away in Japan. Our children came home and photographed it on their iPhones. But coming back I captured the last of its blossom period on a slightly “more mature” camera!
And near the pond we had a crabapple called Malus Spectabilis, and it has really been quite spectacular this spring. A more common name for the species is Asiatic apple. It is quite sour but makes great jam.
