桜 Sakura

Throughout Japan, the cherry, or "sakura" tree is representative of good fortune, new beginnings, and revival.

In 2012, to honor the 100th anniversary of Japan’s gift of cherry trees to the United States, the Japanese government gifted trees to public and private organizations throughout the United States. The Garden received 20 trees.

In general, "sakura", or cherry blossoms, represent the impermanent nature of life. The "sakura" flowering time is very short, in just a couple of weeks the beautiful blossoms will begin to fall.

“If I were asked to explain the Japanese spirit, I would say it is wild cherry blossoms glowing in the morning sun!”
— Motoori Norinaga (1730-1801), nativist thinker and poet