Okame Flowering Cherry Tree

Light Needs

Full Sun

(At Least 6 Hours of Direct Sunlight)

Mature Height

30-40 Feet

Mature Spread

30-40 Feet

Growing Zones

5 to 9

Okame Flowering Cherry Tree shows off early, with rosy pink blooms covering bare branches in clusters of 2 to 5. It has an upright vase shape that stays in the 15–25 foot range. The flowers carry a mild fragrance and pull in early pollinators when little else is blooming. We recommend planting it where you’ll see it from a kitchen window, because you’ll want a front-row seat for the bloom window.

Okame performs best in full sun for the heaviest flowering and strongest fall color, although it will tolerate light shade. This hybrid cherry was bred for carmine-pink bloom with better cold tolerance, and it tends to handle heat and humidity better than many flowering cherries once established. The smooth reddish-brown bark with horizontal lenticels gives winter interest after leaf drop, and fall foliage can move through yellow, orange, and red depending on climate. Use it as a single specimen in a lawn island, a patio-side tree for spring impact, or a repeating row along a driveway where the vase forms create a soft arching line.

Okame Flowering Cherry Tree Care

Plant in full sun, or a bright spot with a minimum of 6 hours of direct light for best flowering and fall color. Choose loamy, moist, well-drained soil, and avoid low spots where water sits after rain. A slightly acidic to neutral pH is preferred.

Water deeply after planting, then keep the root zone evenly moist during the first growing season, especially in warm spells. Once established, it can handle short dry periods, but it blooms and leafs out best when it isn’t drought-stressed heading into spring. Feed in early spring with a balanced tree fertilizer, keeping rates moderate so you don’t force weak, sappy growth.

Prune only as needed, and do it right after flowering so you don’t remove next year’s buds. In winter, remove dead or damaged wood and clean up crossing branches that rub. If you see shoots coming from the base below the graft, cut them off promptly so they don’t overtake the flowering top.

Okame Flowering Cherry Tree Spacing

Give it 15–20 feet of clearance from nearby trees or structures so the canopy can develop evenly and air can move through the branches. If planting a row, space trees about 15–18 feet apart to keep each crown distinct. For companions, use hellebore and primrose beneath the canopy for early-season color that doesn’t compete with roots, and add ferns at the edge of the dripline to soften the transition into lawn. If you want a taller backdrop, tuck a few boxwoods behind the trunk line so the pink blooms pop against evergreen structure.

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