I was wondering will flowering trees ( i.e. cherry ) that requires a certain amount of chill hours still bloom if not given enough chill hours? People I can only find answers about the fruiting ones but not so much the flowering ones. I am only interested in the flowering [prunus] trees, not fruiting selections.
It appears flowering will be reduced or in some cases be erratic concurring over a period of weeks or months rather than all at once. A few high chill varieties may not go into dormancy or won't break dormancy and will fail to thrive. There are no practical differences between fruiting and flowering varieties.
So how do you think Kwanzan and- what Home Depot calls- "Double Flowering Weeping Cherry" do in the San Fernando Valley of Los Angeles ( Chill hour around 250 - 300 )
They don't seem suitable for your area. 'Okame' & "Taiwan Flowering Cherry" seem more suited. http://www.californiagardens.com/Plant_Pages/prunus_campanulata.htm
You can probably get more information (and selection) from an independent garden center instead of going to a big box chain store and then being left wondering about what is offered. Double Weeping cherry could be either one of the Prunus pendula cultivars or one that has been thought to be 'Kiku-shidare-zakura' or similar. The trade in this region has a history of selling this latter as "Prunus serrulata double weeping". You can also see Sunset climate zone designations for multiple kinds in the Sunset Western Garden Book (Sunset Publishing, Menlo Park). There is also a Sunset web site. http://plantfinder.sunset.com/sunset/plant-details.jsp?id=2326 It looks like they have P. 'Kanzan' zoned for some of the hills east of the basin but not down in it. The maps etc. in the printed book are easier to read and use. You might be interested in this one - if you are in a suitable location. This cultivar was discovered in a garden in Glendora, CA, a city in the foothills of the Los Angeles basin http://www.monrovia.com/plant-catalog/plants/934/angels-blush-flowering-cherry.php Myself, I would focus on Japanese apricots instead of Japanese flowering cherries. I grow both here, but the former is in a class by itself. My earliest blooming one makes the back garden smell of carnations in February. http://www.lecooke.com/cms/flowering-fruit-trees/flowering-apricot-trees.html Most of the Japanese apricot cultivars being maintained in commerce by the Cooke Co. originate with the old Clarke nursery in San Jose, during the 1940s. These may have been Japanese cultivars re-named by them for domestic sales.
