Everything you need to know about the cherry blossom trees in High Park

Year after year, viewing the cherry blossom trees is a well-loved spring tradition in Toronto.

Every spring, thousands of Torontonians flock to local parks to snap the perfect photo of the blossoms in peak bloom, which usually only last between four and 10 days, depending on weather conditions.

Before taking your cherry blossom selfie, have you ever stopped to think about its significance?

Especially the iconic High Park cherry blossoms?

In case you haven’t here are a few things you might not know about the High Park cherry blossoms.

Cherry blossoms in Toronto symbolize an invaluable friendship 

While the Sakura trees in Toronto definitely look nice on your Instagram feed, they actually symbolize an invaluable friendship between Canada and Japan, says Consul General of Japan, Takako Ito.

Especially this year, when the two countries are celebrating the 90th anniversary of Japan-Canada diplomatic relations and the 30th anniversary of redress for Japanese-Canadians.

They’re older than you think

Many of the cherry blossom trees in High Park are close to 60-years-old. In 1959, the Japanese ambassador to Canada, Toru-Hagiwara, presented 2,000 Somei-Yoshino Sakura trees to the people of Toronto on behalf of Tokyo.

The trees were gifts to Toronto following the Second World War

The trees were gifted in appreciation for Toronto’s acceptance of relocating Japanese-Canadians following World War Two. Most of the trees were planted on the hillside in High Park overlooking Grenadier Pond.

The gifts continued 

In 1984, an additional batch of cherry blossoms was donated by Yoriki and Midori Iwasaki as a special gift to the people of Toronto and “a joyful symbol of life.”

This batch of trees was planted along a pathway west of the Children’s Adventure Playground in High Park (near the Zoo parking lot).

In 2001 and 2006, a total of 50 additional cherry trees were planted near the original 1959 planting site as part of the Sakura Project, a symbol of friendship between Japan and Canada.

Wildlife value

Despite not being native to Canada, the cherry blossom trees still benefit High Park’s ecosystem.

According to Toronto’s High Park Nature Centre, the fruits on the Yoshino and Akebono cherry trees are a food source for small mammals and the park’s resident songbirds.

The Sakura trees also help Toronto reduce its carbon footprint by storing carbon and creating more oxygen for residents to breathe.

Additionally, these beautiful trees help clean the air, soil and water by absorbing pollutants like carbon monoxide, sulphur dioxide, and nitrogen dioxide.

Additional Sakura sites

Because of Toronto’s Sakura Project, there are additional sites throughout the city that are filled with beautiful Sakura trees.

This includes the CNE grounds, Trinity Bellwoods Park, and the University of Toronto’s main and Scarborough campuses.

Residents can also view cherry blossoms at McMaster University and the Royal Botanical Gardens in Burlington.

Sakura in Japan

Sakura is a Japanese name for “flowering cherry trees and their flowers” and is often referred to as cherry blossoms, according to High Park Nature Centre.

Due to their very short bloom time, Sakura blossoms are seen as a metaphor for life itself, “luminous and beautiful, yet fleeting and ephemeral.”

Flower viewings

By the Heian Period (794-1191) cherry trees began attracting attention and were planted for their beauty, mainly in Kyoto (Japan’s capital city during this era).

The Japanese traditional custom of hanami (flower viewing) was originally limited to the elite and Japanese nobility.

Over time hanami became practiced by the samurai and eventually included all levels of Japanese society.

Today, when Sakura trees bloom in Japan, people continue the tradition of hanami, and gather in groups and eat and drink sake beneath the flowering trees — similar to what residents do in Toronto each spring.

See also

• This garden less than an hour from Toronto is full of cherry blossoms (PHOTOS)
• 20 dreamy shots of the High Park cherry blossoms this weekend (PHOTOS)
• Update: High Park cherry blossoms expected to bloom this weekend