1974); P. pseudocerasus Lindley (Veitch, 1906); and P. serrulata 

 Lindley (Miyoshi, 1916; Russell, 1934; Ingram, 1948); and P. 

 lannesiana and P. serrulata (Wilson, 1916; Gashu, 1976). 



Wild and Cultivated Taxa 



Clearly the taxonomic assignment of cultivar names to wild 

 Japanese species is not appropriate and only added more confusion. 

 In this publication, only cultivated selections are discussed. 

 However, several species of cherries are indigenous to Japan or 

 have become naturalized after escaping from early cultivation. 

 These species can be found throughout most of Japan under 

 appropriate growing conditions. Rehder (1958) listed 14 such 

 species: P. apetala (Siebold & Zuccarini) Franchet & Savatier; P. 

 buergeriana Miquel; P. campanulata Maximowicz; P. grayana 

 Maximowicz; P. incisa Thunberg; P. maximowiczii Ruprecht; P. 

 nipponica Matsumura; P. padus L; P. sargentii Rehder; P. serrulata 

 Lindley; P. sieboldii (Carriere) Wittmak; P. ssiori F. Schmidt; P. 

 subhirtella Miquel; and P. yedoensis Matsumura. 



Some of these species and others introduced from various parts 

 of the Orient hybridized naturally during the early horticultural 

 development of Japan and produced many of the cherry cultivars in 

 cultivation throughout the world today. Different cherry selections 

 resulted from natural hybridization of these species, and vast areas 

 in many parts of Japan became covered with seedling cherries when 

 species and hybrids escaped from cultivation. 



Many of the cherries that escaped from cultivation in Japan are 

 progeny of species planted in mountainous areas for the 

 horticultural interest of "cherry viewing" that started over 1200 

 years ago (Gashu, 1976). Although several references are made to 

 "cherry viewing" in Japanese chronicles as far back as 720 A.D. 

 and to cherries being planted in Japanese gardens before 794, there 

 is no proof that any of these cultivated selections are grown today. 

 Between 1 600 and 1 867, Japanese gardeners made selections from 

 many different cultivated and wild variants with varying degrees of 

 ornamental merit. During the 17th through the 19th centuries, many 

 selections of Japanese flowering cherries were described in garden 

 books and records. Mizuno (1681 and 1716) in "Kadan komoku" 

 listed 40 cultivated selections of cherries that were possibly under 

 cultivation at that time. Of those listed, the cultivars Ariake, 

 Edozakura, Fugenzo, Hizakura, Horinji, Itokukuri, Kirigaykatsu, 

 Kirin, Sekiyama, Shojo, Toranoo, Washinoo, and Yokihi are still 

 grown today. 



The Japanese established two terms to differentiate the wild 

 cherries from those of cultivated or garden origin. They were 

 "Yama-zakura" (mountain cherries) for wild plants and 



