Three Year Low Bud Flowering Cherries

The L.E. Cooke Co grows Flowering Cherries several different ways.  For many years they were only grown as "Top Grafted" on Mazzard (Prunus avium) rootstocks.  Everyone is familliar with the top grafted Weeping Cherries like the double pink flowered Prunus subhirtella 'Pendula Rosea'.  We also top graft almost all the upright flowering cherries as well.  For some reason that was the expected form for the ornamental gardens of the west coast and we provided quality trees in this form for years.

When we started growing them budded at the ground to meet that other demand, we grew the weeping ones in a three year field to get the height but everyting else in a two year field.  I was not satisfied with the size and caliper of the ones from the 2 year fields for our landscape orientated customers.  So we moved most to the three year fields and now I want to show you what you can get.

Beni Hoshi 3 Year Low Bud

Autumnalis 3 Year Low Bud (Notice some fall bloom)

One of the advantages of low budded flowering cherries is the branches help provide shade for the trunks from the hot summer sun.  If you live in a hot summer area like ours, the top grafted cherries will get sunburn on the trunk which is why we whitewash the trunks.  Not so on the low buds.

I also want you to compare the low budded Weeping Cherries with the Top Grafted Weeping Cherries.  Most of us in the office prefer the Low Budded Weeping Cherries because they have weeping branches all up  the trunk - not just at the top.

Low Budded Snow Fountains - notice weeping all the way up the trunk (Phillip is 6'3" for comparison)

Top Grafted Snow Fountains from 3 year field

Root system on 3 year Flowering Cherry

Low Bud Snow Fountains planted by the entrance to my daughter's home

We have a very nice harvest of low budded flowering cherries with large calipers and good heads - both weepers and uprights.

Ron Ludekens 12-17-2010