In the great cherry debate, people often choose bing or Ranier. Both are full of antioxidants and soothe the body’s inflammatory.response.
Though bred, rather than being native, the Ranier cherry is sometimes picked too early, giving it a flavor reminiscent of WA’s true native, the bitter cherry.
Alas, the native wild or bitter cherry is on my mind due to our recent loss of one that had to be more than 50-years-old. It fell at 4 am in the drenching downpour, crushing the fence and damaging our neighbor’s car.
Most say the wild cherry is for the birds. The rare moment we got to try its fruit, it wasn’t bad. But the blossoms were the real star, bringing beauty to the neighborhood.
One spring, we had so many blossoms on our car that people kept honking, maybe thinking we’d just married.
Blossoms more than fruit inspire Japan, helping them welcome pleasant days. Historically speaking, Seattle was the stopover for trees gifted from Japan to the other Washington in the early 1900s.
Whether any remained in Seattle isn’t mentioned. Seattle was, however, gifted cherry trees in the 50s, many of which are in Point Defiance Park.
Sources say the world famous UW cherry trees were transplanted from the Arboretum in 1964. Their origin is not mentioned, but wow are they amazing!
Whether pink or white- blossomed, cherry trees capture the hearts of the world even if they never fruit
This has been a combination eulogy to a tree and Tuesday Historical Trivia Tidbit.
Goodbye beautiful tree!