There’s still time to enjoy Vancouver’s stunning cherry blossom season – undoubtedly one of the most beautiful times of year – and one we always wish lasted longer. Hailing from Japan and symbolizing spring renewal, flowering cherry trees (also known as cherry blossoms) are considered the ornamental versions of the fruit-bearing trees, cultivated by humans over hundreds of years.
We spoke with naturalist, author, and local cherry blossom guide Nina Shoroplova about the logistics of cultivating Vancouver’s different cherry tree varieties.
“A cultivar is a cultivated variety, and cherry blossoms are cultivated by horticulturalists,” she explains. “As many as a thousand years ago, village lords in Japan learned to cultivate crossbred plants. We don’t even know how they did it, but perhaps they transferred pollen from one plant to another, planting the resulting cherry.”
In this way, popular cherry blossom varieties like the Somei-yoshino were born.
From Somei-yoshino to Akebono
Already a hybrid plant, the Somei-yoshino doesn’t attract many insects because its reproductive organs have been a bit “distorted” in the process of cultivation, according to Shoroplova.
“They kept cultivating it, and cultivating it, and they realized they had a new cultivar from the old variety,” she explains. “The Akebono is a seedling of the Somei-yoshino, a cultivar that’s now 100 years old in 2025.”
Shoroplova shares that the Akebono variety in Vancouver differs from its 1925 parent tree in California, which has now made its way across the globe.
“The 100 Akebono blossoms donated to David Lam Park by Dr. David Lam share identical DNA, making them clones of each other.”
In addition to retaining its natural beauty, the Akebono has cultivated somewhat rain-proof flowers, says Shoroplova.
“These trees have very thin bark and are susceptible to injury, but they’ve been grafted to withstand aging much better than a lot of other cherry trees.”
Grafting is a horticultural technique that joins the tissues of plants to continue their growth together, resulting in a tree with the desirable characteristics of both.
Becoming a naturalist
Shoroplova grew up in Cardiff, Wales, first taking an interest in trees as a Brownie Scout.
“I found a leaf and was told it was an oak tree. And that was thrilling to me, that they could identify what kind of tree it was by the leaf.”
Her transition to becoming a naturalist occurred when she moved to Vancouver and wrote Legacy of Trees: Purposeful Wandering in Vancouver’s Stanley Park, selling her book outside her apartment building during the peak of the pandemic.
“I realized that I could write the story of Stanley Park by concentrating on the trees themselves,” she shared. “There are 30 or more trees at the park with plaques below them that tell you when they were planted and for what purpose.”
She now leads tree walks for the Cherry Blossom Festival, taking groups of 20 to 25 people to some of the most stunning blossom locations in the city.
A “parade of tree beauty”
When asked about some of her favourite trees to visit every year, Shoroplova said that a specific ash tree at English Bay is near and dear to her heart.
“I explained to some people I took along English Bay Beach the other day that this particular tree is my favourite. And they asked ‘why?’ So I tried to think, well, why is it my favourite?”
“For me, it’s about how the tree looks every season. How does it look when it has snow on it? How does it look when it has no leaves? What are its flowers like?”
According to Shoroplova, ash trees produce very small flowers, as is the case for all wind-pollinated trees.
“They’re so small that you can barely see them. You have to get there very early in the year to see the flowers.”
Shoroplova expresses her love for larger flowers and the many varieties that come and go throughout the year.
“It is a real treat. We have an absolute parade of tree beauty, going from the beginning of the year to the end.”
Rare & “unusual” cherry blossoms
Ready to go for a spring stroll surrounded by a sea of pink? These are some of what Shoroplova calls Vancouver’s most “unusual” varieties, and where to find them.
- “Autumnalis Rosea” near Lost Lagoon
- “Ojochin” at the Japanese Canadian War Memorial in Stanley Park
- “Gyoiko” near a works yard in Stanley Park
- “Yae-beni-shidare”
- “Snofozam” in the West End
- “Beni-shidare”
- “Sendai-shidare” in the West End
According to the VCBF, Prunus Serrula (Birch Bark Cherry) is another rare variety, in bloom in Arbutus Ridge (King Edward at Valley Drive) from Saturday, April 19 to May 5, 2025.
As for recent blooms (April 16, 2025), the rare Takasago variety tends to look “awkward and diseased,” according to the VCBF. However, when they bloom, their flowers are “so beautiful and densely packed that all is forgiven.”
The deep pink buds open to reveal “pinky-white” double flowers, which will gradually turn white and acquire “red eyes” as time goes on.
“These uncommon trees have a few even more rare look-alikes,” says the VCBF. “Their distinctive characteristic is their hairy, almost fuzzy, flower stems.”
Finally, they might not be “rare” per se, but Shoroplova says that the four old Somei-yoshino trees south of the Pipeline Road roundabout are definitely worth visiting.
“They could very well be a part of the gift of cherry trees from the Uyeda family.”
Where did Vancouver’s cherry blossoms come from?
Cherry blossoms first came to Canada aboard a ship in 1925 alongside the mayors of Kobe and Yokohama, Japan, where they were presented as gifts to the Vancouver Park Board. The gift of 500 flowering Ojochin cherry trees honoured the Japanese Canadian veterans of WWI and their immense sacrifices.
After the forced internment of 22,000 Japanese Canadians on the West Coast in 1942, they’ve also come to represent the resilience of Japanese Canadians and commemorate the many contributions they’ve made to B.C. and Canada, despite the atrocities they faced in the decades that followed.
“The 1930s through the ‘50s saw Park Board staff sowing cherry tree seeds in significant numbers thanks to contributions from Japanese Canadians,” says the Vancouver Cherry Blossom Festival (VCBF) website. “For instance, local business owners and philanthropists Bunjiro and Kimi Uyeda donated a thousand cherry trees in 1935 in anticipation of Vancouver’s golden jubilee.”
Due to financial struggles during the Depression, however, these trees were not planted until April 1942, just three months after the Uyeda family was forcibly relocated to Kaslo.
Which cherry blossoms are in bloom right now?
It’s the Kanzan variety’s time to shine! These cherry blossoms can be found across the city from Thursday, April 17, through May 5, 2025.
Here are some notable spots to roam the deep pink Kanzans:
- St Catherine’s St., from Broadway to E 16th Ave.
- St George St. and King Edward Ave.
- 57th Ave. and Hudson St. to Granville St.
- Sophia St. and 28th Ave.
- 20th Ave. and Arbutus St.
- West 36~38 Ave. and Crown to Camosun St.
White cherry blossom varieties like Shogetsu and Ukon can be found scattered in specific neighbourhoods such as Kerrisdale, in bloom until May 5 and April 29, 2025, respectively.
Happy cherry blossom season, Vancouver!
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