Prunus 'Okame'

Okame cherry

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Description

Prunus ‘Okame’ (Okame cherry) was cross-bred by captain and botanist Collingwood ‘Cherry’ Ingram in Benenden, England in 1947. Okame means turtle in Japanese and is the lucky symbol for a long life. The tree is a hybrid between the very winterhardy Fuji cherry (Prunus incisa) and very richly flowering Taiwanese cherry (Prunus campanulata): that created a Prunus incisa with the dark flowers of the non-winterhardy Prunus campanulata. The Okame cherry is more of a large multi-stem shrub than a small tree with a mature height of 3 - 5 metres and a flattened round, semi-open crown. Sometimes, the tree is grafted on a stem, creating a more oval crown.

In late March, early April, Prunus ‘Okame’ is one of the earliest Japanese cherry trees to bloom very lush with deep pink, cup-shaped flowers. Bees love to land on them, and Prunus ‘Okame’ has very valuable pollen production. Its oval leaves with a hairy underside bud somewhat bronze after blooming, then green and in autumn, the tree has a spectacular orange to red leaf colouration. The cultivar has smooth, dark brown bark. Prunus ‘Okame’ bears no fruit.

Like both of its parents, Prunus ‘Okame’ likes to grow in nutrient-rich, moist loam, loess, sabulous clay, richer sand and lighter clay soil. This Japanese cherry tree hates wet feet and cannot handle compact soil. The cultivar is perfect for sheltered gardens, but also thrives in parks, especially when planted in larger groups in sunny areas.

Types of planting

Tree types

solitary shrubs

Use

Location

park in containers large garden small garden patio cemetery

Pavement

none

Characteristics

Crown shape

narrow oval

Crown structure

dense

Height

3 - 5 m

Width

3 - 5 m

Winter hardiness zone

6A - 9B

Aspects

Wind

intolerant to wind

Soil

loess sabulous clay light clay sand loamy soil

Nutrient level

moderately rich in nutrients rich in nutrients

Soil moisture level

dry moist

Light requirements

sun

pH range

neutral alkaline

7.8 - 8.2

Host plant/forage plant

bees

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Photos

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characteristic

multi-stem

multi-stem umbrella

flowers

leaves

bark

twigs

Flowers

cup-shaped striking pendulous singular small

Flower colour

dark pink

Flowering period

March - April

Leaves

Leaf colour

buds bronze green

Leaves

deciduous ovoid small narrow underside hairy dentate

Autumn colour

orange red

Fruits

no fruit

Bark

Bark colour

dark brown

Bark

smooth

Twigs

Twig colour

brown

Twigs

bare with lenticels

Root system

shallow

For and by green professionals

The TreeEbb is a platform for and by green professionals, in which we collect knowledge and experience from the sector and make this available for users. All the details and photos are free to use for non-commercial purposes. Want to share your tree knowledge? Send photographs and additional information to treeebb@ebben.nl

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Winter hardiness

A plant's winter hardiness is the coldest area in which it is frost-resistant. This is based on the average annual minimum temperature. Winter hardiness zones are thirteen different frost zones in steps of 5.5 degrees Celsius. This format is an international standard for the hardiness of plants. The zones in which the plant is frost-resistant are always included in the description of trees and other vegetation.

Winter hardiness is a genetic characteristic and is not influenced by the location in which the plant is cultivated. This means that a plant that has been cultivated for many years in winter-hardiness zone 6 but has a winter hardiness of 3 is perfectly suited for replanting in a colder zone. It will thrive there thanks to its genetic characteristics.

When choosing planting for a project, the winter hardiness of the plants is extremely important. By choosing species that match the zone in which the project is being created, it is possible to ensure that plants can withstand the minimum temperature in that area.

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