The genus Prunus, the ancient Latin name for the plum, includes plums, apricots, almonds, peaches and cherries, both fruiting and ornamental. As a group they do best in deep, rich, moist soil in sites of full sun but sheltered from strong winds, which will shatter the blossom.

All species and varietal forms of Prunus can be transplanted when dormant; pruned back with an eye to training in the first year of growth then more lightly for the following two seasons. Many species have been used as street trees within local landscapes. P.’ pissardii’ in Flinders Way; P. nigra in Manuka Circle and P. blireiana on Canberra Avenue.

Most of the Japanese flowering cherries are varieties or hybrids of Prunus serrulata, of which many nurseries carry an extensive range because of the tree’s versatile shape, size and form. P. ‘Amangawa’, has a distinctive silhouette that is covered with fragrant clusters of semi-double soft pink bloom. P. ‘Kanzan’ (6-10m  x 6-8m) has red to fuchsia-purple flowers- from mid season to late, and is the most commonly planted flowering cherry in Australia.

Among the flowering plums, Prunus ‘Elvins’, a small, specimen tree (3x3m), produces a stunning display of tightly packed, mixed pink and white blooms on willowy branches.

Weeping trees offer a third dimension to a garden. Unmatched as a statement, they become the crown jewel on a bank or rockery, or the mainstay of a border.

Prunus ‘Snow Fountains’ on a standard graft (1.2m short or 1.8m tall) offers a sensational display of single white flowers over the whole tree in spring. Prunus x subhirtella ‘Pendula Rubra’ carries pretty single pink flowers as it spreads in maturity to 5x5m.

Weeping trees are pruned to maintain their natural habit, though it is the length of the standard onto which the variety has been grafted that determines the height of the tree.