Cherry Blossom in Ontario
Haiku “Oh Cherry Blossom”
- “Oh cherry blossom
- Firsts of new born spring’s awesome
- How I love thy all”
- ~ Peter S. Quinn
Haiku “Look at the Cherry Blossoms”
- “Look at the cherry blossoms!
- Their color and scent fall with them,
- Are gone forever,
- Yet mindless
- The spring comes again.”
- ~ Ikkyu
Sakura is the national tree of Japan. The most popular type of cherry blossom is the Somei-Yoshino that much loved for its fluffy nearly pure white flowers. When it blooms the tree looks white from top to bottom. “Hanami” is the centuries-old tradition of picnicking under a blooming sakura.
Cherry blossoms at the Tokyo Imperial Palace
In 1959, the Japanese Consulate donated many Somei-Yoshino cherry trees to High Park in Toronto as part of the Sakura Project to celebrate the continual strengthening of friendship between Japan and Canada. Sakura Cherry Blossoms in High Park tracks the annual bud to blossom bloom progress and celebrates the beauty and heritage of the Sakura in Toronto.
Through the Sakura Project, more cherry trees were planted in various locations in Ontario: Exhibition Place, McMaster University, York University (near Calumet College and on Ottawa Road near McLaughlin College), the University of Toronto’s main (next to Robarts Library) and Scarborough campuses, Niagara Falls (near the falls itself), Royal Botanical Gardens in Burlington and Hamilton.
