First posting in 2008 Festival Favorite # 27, Tai Haku on W. 16 centre green, west of Highbury. In full bloom April 18, 2008.
* Finished - Akebono - West Point Grey, Tolmie from 4th to 5th Takasagos on Tolmie between 4th and 5th are a 2008 VCBF Festival Favourite.
Re: Akebonos - West Point Grey, Tolmie from 4th to 5th April 19, 2008 [edited by wcutler: I asked Ric to get photos of the supposed Takasagos at this location, but they seem to have become Akebonos]
Re: * POSTED - Tai Haku - West Point Grey, 16th Ave Dunbar to Crown Here are a couple of closeups, April 19th, 2008
I know there are lots of Point Grey pictures in the cultivar threads, but here's a start with Quesnel Street north of King Edward, taken on April 5th, 2008, a week or so before full bloom.
There are some cherries in Point Grey. Here are a nice group of Shirotae that will soon be joined by Kanzans on Highbury at 7th. These look like Shirotae and maybe they are, but if the UBC Shirotae are past their prime, how could these at 6th and Drummond Drive (near UBC) be Shirotae and just be opening now? The petal edges and peduncle and pedicel length are not right for Shogetsu. I think I remember them having a nice fragrance. This seems like it would be a private planting, but it's on the boulevard. These on the median and north side of 16th approaching UBC might also be Shirotae, but they don't seem to have that fresh green and white appearance of Shirotae. I didn't notice that at the time so didn't take any closeups.
Shirotae - West Point Grey, Highbury from 6th to 7th First posting in 2009 Of the four Prunus Sato-zakura Group 'Shirotae' on Highbury south of 6th Ave, only one is in bloom on April 17, but the others have open blossoms and will be in full bloom soon. This block will have Kanzans across the street, usually not at the same time as the Shirotae.
Re: Dunbar-Southlands Atsumori in bloom on southside of W. 14, west of Wallace by Lord Byng Secondary, April 22, 2009.
10th from Tolmie to Discovery No more of these blooms now (images from end of last week at corners of Sasamat): BUT rows of Kanzans on both sides of 10th are starting to come out:
April 25, 2009 (Pictured) There are 3 young Akebonos still blooming at the corner of W16 & Blanca St. They are slower than UBC Akebonos and almost same condition as Douglas's father's Akebonos at Kullahun Dr. near Shaughnessy Golf Couse.
May 4, 2009 There are 14 Avium Plenas on west side of Highbury between 1st and 4th. The tree at most southside of the row was finishing today but others were at peak bloom. I saw some witch's Brooms on a few trees. There were some Amanogawas finishing in the garden of the Yacht Club on Point Grey Rd.
Highbury between 10th and 1st has 4 types of cherries: Akebono, Shirotae, Kanzan and Avium Plena. Kanzan (10th to 5th) are just beginnig to bloom and the Shirotae (between 6th and 7th) are fading. But there may be the brief time when both are out together, branches with different colour cherries reaching out to each other. Last year they bloomed at the same time making a lovely canopy on Highbury. The Avium Plena between 4th and 1st are also just starting to bloom. See picture below in 2009.
Spanish Banks East Concession Stand - there's a grove of 4 older and large spreading shirofugens (1 of the 4 is more exposed to the winds and not so large). Still in bud but maybe with the warmer weather this week, they will bloom. I'll check back in when they are in blossom.
I convinced myself to go back to Blanca to get a 'Kanzan' photo on Chancellor, and I just happened to pick 7th to drive along. I was amazed to find a whole block of big old 'Ukon', 10 of them between Trimble and Sasamat. I know the colour in the blossom photo isn't convincing, but you can compare the tree photo colour to the white car. There is one 'Shirofugen' among the 'Ukon'. A block away, on Tolmie, is one P. avium 'Plena'. And this pink thing just south of it. I'd have just called it 'Kanzan' if we hadn't been questioning things today. I thought maybe it didn't have enough stuff happening in the centre of the blossoms. Sorry no better photo of the tree. I thought I'd waterlogged the camera at that point. I only got a fuzzy, soggy 'Plena' closeup - good enough to confirm for myself that's what it is, but not good enough to show you. I can add this line of 'Kanzan' on Chancellor Blvd here - it looks like this area west of Blanca is still West Point Grey. This is probably the last place to have engagement photos taken with pink cherry blossoms that haven't faded or started falling from the trees.
These two Shirofugen cherries growing in the sand on the west side of Jericho Sailing Club look like they could be in a Bonsai pot. The photos where taken April 25th 2010. I wished the lighting condition could have been better.
Jericho Beach April 16, 2011. [edited by wcutler: removed comments regarding which neighbourhood this belongs in] Anyway, this is a long telephoto shot. I was just getting into my car in the parking lot and had no time to investigate. The tree is large, but spindly and dwarfed by others nearby; hence the shot with the people walking by. It is at Jericho Beach just west of the Pier and Sailing Centre. There is at least one more a little further west along the same beach-side walk/cycle path.
16th forms the border for ten neighbourhoods. At Highbury, it's West Point Grey on the north side and Dunbar on the south. We've given these Festival Favourite 'Tai Haku' on the median to West Point Grey.
The excitement started today with the discovery of four 'Amanogawa' at the Royal Vancouver Yacht Club on Point Grey Road at Wallace. Mariko posted these in 2009, but I've never seen them. The one on the right in the second photo is much larger than the others and has a lot of leaves but very few flowers; the others are covered in flowers and the leaves are not as prominent. Then what I was aiming to see - the avium 'Plena' on Highbury from 1st to 4th. They're huge and look great right now. Note the typical avium leaves with the uneven margins. These are a 2011 VCBF festival favourite. What I really really wanted to see were some trees I noticed on on Bellevue on a walk in February, and then I didn't manage to get to them before they finished blooming. I thought they'd be 'Takasago' or 'Mikuruma-gaeshi', and yes they are. There are enough flowers still to identify them. This one 'Takasago' is on the north side of the street near Tolmie. The third photo is so you can see all the hairs. At the other end of the block, near Belmont, are five 'Mikuruma-gaeshi', looking just as good as that cultivar in other parts of the city (which is to say, not great). This is the best-looking of the trees. Four of them are on the south side of the street. Also on the block are several 'Kanzan' of varying ages. This is the oldest and a fine-looking tree. There is also one very young 'Shirofugen'.
2 Shirofugens at Jericho Beach is the first picture. Then there's a stand of 4 old Shirofugen at Spanish Banks concession. All of them are in perfect bloom today.... but before the hail storm!
