Rancho Cherry Blossom, Large Trees

Prunus sargentii Rancho: Bareroot Rancho Cherry Trees in Standard Sizes

Probably the most upright of the flowering cherries, Prunus sargentii Rancho is a narrow form of the beautiful Prunus sargentii cherry tree which has pink blossom and brilliant autumn colour.
It has profuse, dark pink flowers that appear on bare wood in the spring, while its copper-purple young leaves are still very small. The leaves have serrated edges and turn dark glossy green in the summer. In autumn, they put on an awesome display of red and dark yellow. The flowers can sometimes be followed by small, bitter cherries which are taken by birds and squirrels. Rancho has rather shiny, smooth reddish brown bark that shows well when the tree is dormant.
Young trees are extremely narrow, and although they will begin to spread out a bit more when they are mature, they never lose their erect form and old trees (50 years+) shouldn't develop a canopy more than about 3-4 metres wide, perfect for tight spaces. They can reach a height of about 10 metres.

Browse our variety of cherry blossom trees or our full range of ornamental trees.

Delivery season: Rancho cherry trees are delivered bareroot during late autumn and winter, approximately November-March inclusive.
Choosing a size: Small trees are cheaper, easier to handle and more forgiving of less than ideal aftercare, so they are best for a big planting project. If instant impact is your priority, or if you are only buying a few plants for use in a place where it is convenient to water them well in their first year, then you may as well use bigger ones. All our bareroot trees are measured by their height in centimetres above the ground (the roots aren't measured).

Features:

• Height: To 10m by 4m
• Soil: Any decently well drained
• Use: Specimen, small garden, avenue, urban, large containers
• Colour: Pink flowers in April
• Bareroot delivery only: November-March
  

Growing Rancho Cherry Trees

Suitable for any well drained soil, we recommend planting in full sun. It is well suited to large containers designed for trees.

Notes on planting Prunus sargentii Rancho trees:
Prunus sargentii Rancho trees prefer fertile, moist soil with good drainage. They like heavy clay, as long as the site doesn't become waterlogged in winter. They are good to grow on chalky soil.
Although they are tolerant of shade, we really recommend them for full sun. Cherry trees in the shade tend to become spindly and won't flower very well.
We don't recommend them for exposed, windy sites, where they will be blown out of shape by the wind.
Although your trees are hardy, late spring frosts can ruin their flower display. Avoid planting cherry blossom trees in frost pockets or North facing sites in colder areas.

Prepare your site before planting:
It is good to dig over the site where you plant a tree several months in advance. Kill the weeds first: for tough weeds like nettles, brambles and ground elder, you will usually need a weed-killer to get rid of them. When you dig the soil over, remove stones and other rubbish and mix in well rotted compost or manure down to the depth of about 2 spades.

Watch our video on how to plant a tree for full instructions.
Remember to water establishing trees during dry weather for at least a year after planting.

Tree Planting accessories:
Prepare your site for planting by killing the weeds and grass.
You can buy a tree planting pack with a wooden stake & rubber tie to support the tree and a mulch mat with pegs to protect the soil around the base of your tree from weeds and drying out.
We suggest that you use mycorrhizal "friendly fungi" on the roots of all newly planted large trees: if your soil quality is poor, we strongly recommend it.
You can also improve your soil with bonemeal organic fertiliser.

Did You Know?

The species is native to Japan and China, and this variety was introduced to Britain from America in 1950.

Standard trees are measured by their girth in centimetres 1 metre above ground level: their trunk's waist measurement. Unlike sapling trees and hedge plants, standards aren't measured by their height, which will vary quite a bit both between and within species.
So, a 6/8cm standard tree has a trunk with a circumference of 6-8cm and an 8/10 standard has a trunk 8-10cm around. This measurement makes no difference to the tree's final height.
On average, standard trees are 2-3.5 metres tall when they arrive, but we cannot tell you precisely how tall your trees will be before we deliver them.