Species and varieties in the National Collection of Flowering Cherries at

Keele University

This is a complete list of all the flowering cherries that we have at Keele. The list will change as we add new ones and, sadly, when we loose trees. Follow the link to location maps at foot of each page. The grid on the map will help you to locate trees if you are planning a visit. You can download the Guide to the National Collection of Flowering Cherries leaflet here.

Name changes

The taxonomy of flowering cherries is quite fluid and frequent changes of name occur. There is an update page that will advise you of changes including changes of name.

Sato-zakura Group

In the past it has often been the practice to attach the names of Japanese  flowering cherries of garden origin to a particular species, usually Prunus serrulata Lind. or  Prunus lannesiana (Carrière) E H Wilson.  Modern DNA research has confirmed that these cultivars are invariably hybrids derived mainly from three native Japanese species – Oshima Cherry (P. speciosa), Japanese Mountain Cherry (P. jamasakura) and Sargent’s Cherry (P. sargentii) and therefore cannot be assigned to any one species.  In 1984, two USA workers, Jefferson & Wain, first proposed the term Sato-zakura Group (Sato = village, sakura = cherry) as a convenient way of grouping together these cherries of garden origin in Japan with an uncertain parentage and this has been adopted on this website.  It is also in use in recent Japanese literature and is compliant with the International Code of Nomenclature for Cultivated Plants.  Cultivars raised outside Japan, such as ‘Pink Perfection’ (UK)  and ‘Royal Burgundy’ (USA) are excluded from the Sato-zakura Group.

Members of the Sato-zakura Group are indicated below with an asterisk *

A

 B

C

D

E

F

G

H

I

J

K

L

M

N

O

P

Q

R

S

T

U

W

Y

Z