Memorial tree

[Curlykale]

Hi all

I have recently lost my beloved mum and want to plant a tree in her memory.

She adored the blossom-covered trees in spring, and one of the last things that made her smile was a tree covered with beautiful pink blossom outside her bedroom window.

The 'memorial' tree would have to be planted in the middle of my lawn, in a north facing garden. The important thing is that it has pink blossom, but if it also bore fruit that would be a big bonus.

Can anyone suggest a suitable tree? It would be fairly close to the house so couldn't be too big.

Any advice / suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.

[Glutton4...]

Have a G**gle for Prunus serrulata 'Kanzan' I think that'll do it! My commiserations for your loss, and I hope she would have approved of my choice.

[FB.]

I would suggest Brownlees Russet apple tree, on a strong rootstock such as M25.

It is very pest and disease resistant, has genuine pink blossom (not white with pink tinge), has huge amounts of beautiful blossom in spring, does well with minimal attention, and grows at a slower-than average rate (hence recommended on a strong rootstock, which, with the strong root system should also give the tree a very long and healthy life even when nature throws harsh conditions at it).

> R.V.Roger < often stock them.

.

[Jeanied]

May I suggest a crab apple - Malus Red Sentinel. Mine is covered thickly in blossom in the spring and holds onto some lovely deep red small crab apples in the winter. The birds love them - my tree has fed blackbirds, thrushes and fieldfares in the worst of the snow. If you want to cook with them, the apples add a lovely rosy colour to jams and jellies. A good all rounder really.

[VirginVegGrower]

All good examples above - my particular favourite is the Judas Tree - Cercis siliquastrum. Ornamental cherries are pretty and probably what your Mother loved as in G4's post above.
Sorry about your loss...it's a lovely thing you are doing. Once established, a tree seat around it may be of a place of solace for you all.

[Curlykale]

G4, you are right - the Prunus serrulata 'Kanzan' looks just like the trees Mum loved - she would definitely have approved. My only concern is that it may grow too big for my garden - could it be pruned/trimmed to keep it to a manageable size? Thank you everybody for your suggestions and kind words. VVG I love the idea of a tree seat too.

[VirginVegGrower]

Those ornamental cherries grow large over time which is why I suggested the slower growing Judas Tree. Don't think you can contain them too much, the cherries that is. My grandmother had two in her garden - very large garden and we children used to play "getting married" under them as the blossoms fell. This also makes a mess all over your grass but only adults bothered about things like that.
There are various ornamental cherries with differing blossom types and colours. Suggest a google maybe to see if any grow to a relatively normal garden size? Failing that look at dwarf stock fruit trees. What was your mother's name - anything that could correspond there with a growing memorial?

[Glutton4...]

I'm no expert on tree pruning, but my Parents' Cherry gets severely pruned every coupe of years or so. I think it's like a lot of plants; keep on top of it, and it won't become a problem.