What to Do With a Cherry Blossom Tree After Flowers Fall Off

After the breathtaking display of cherry blossoms, their delicate beauty is fleeting. The tree, however, continues its essential journey through growth and development, laying the groundwork for future seasons of bloom.

Visual Transformation After Blooming

Once cherry blossom petals fall, the tree undergoes a visual transformation. This marks the end of the floral display and the beginning of foliage development. The tree’s energy shifts from producing flowers to growing leaves, which are crucial for photosynthesis.

Small, green fruitlets may also form where the flowers once were. While many ornamental cherry varieties do not produce edible fruit, their formation is a natural part of the tree’s reproductive cycle. The tree’s canopy gradually fills with vibrant green leaves, replacing the soft hues of the spent blossoms and preparing for warmer months.

Essential Post-Bloom Care

Proper care after flowering is important for the tree’s sustained health. Consistent moisture is preferred, especially during dry spells. Water deeply and thoroughly, ensuring the water penetrates the soil until surface drainage stops.

Fertilization can replenish nutrients depleted during blooming. An organic fertilizer, applied around the tree’s drip line, provides a slow release of nutrients throughout the growing season. Monitoring for common pests like aphids, spider mites, or Japanese beetles, and diseases such as leaf spot or powdery mildew, is beneficial. Addressing these issues early with appropriate treatments, such as spraying aphids off with water or treating fungal diseases with fungicide, can prevent significant problems. Light pruning to remove dead or diseased wood or suckers can be done in late spring or summer.

Summer Growth and Future Blooms

The period following spring bloom and throughout summer is fundamental for the tree’s long-term vitality. During these warmer months, the tree engages in photosynthesis through its newly developed leaves. This process converts sunlight into energy, which the tree then stores in its roots and branches.

The stored energy is essential for the tree’s overall health and its ability to produce a robust display of flowers in the following spring. It is during this summer growth phase that next year’s flower buds begin to develop and mature, remaining small and dormant until the following spring. The quality and quantity of the subsequent year’s blossoms are directly influenced by the tree’s health and energy reserves accumulated during summer.

Looking Ahead to the Next Season

As late summer transitions into autumn, the cherry blossom tree prepares for its dormant period. The green leaves, having worked throughout the summer to store energy, begin to change color, displaying hues of yellow, orange, or red before falling. This leaf drop signals the tree’s entry into a resting phase.

During winter, the tree enters dormancy, a period of minimal activity that is necessary for its survival and for the proper development of flower buds. Cool temperatures are important for this chilling period, which prepares the buds to open in spring. The care provided in the post-bloom period and throughout the summer directly supports the tree’s progression through these seasonal changes, contributing to another spectacular flowering season.

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