「おおしまざくら(Prunus speciosa)」と「えどひがん(Prunus pendula f. ascendens)」の種間交雑種です。和名は幕末のころに、東京染井村の植木屋さんが、「吉野」の名称で販売したことに由来します。3月から4月にかけて、新葉の展開に先立って花を咲かせます。花色は咲きはじめは淡紅色ですが、満開になると白色に変わります。写真中31は、白石川に浮かんで流れる「花筏(はないかだ)」。
バラ科サクラ属の落葉高木で、学名は Prunus x yedoensis。英名は Tokyo cherry、Yoshino cherry。
The Tokyo cherry (Prunus x yedoensis) belongs to Rosaceae (the Rose family). It is a tall deciduous tree that is a interspecific hybrid between "Ooshima-zakura" (Prunus speciosa) and "Edo-higan" (Prunus pendula f. ascendens). This cherry bloom in March and April before foliation. The flower is pale pink at beginning and turn white when full bloom. This tree has been cultivated from the last days of Edo Era (1603-1868). The Japanese name comes from the fact that around the end of the Edo period, a gardener in Somei-mura, Tokyo, sold the plant under the name "Yoshino". The 32th photo shows a "flower raft" floating down the Shiroishi River.