ONE hundred cherry trees have been planted at Kingston Lacy, after being gifted by Japan to celebrate Japanese-British friendship.

The trees, which form part of the National Trust's annual celebration of spring blossom, have been planted in Kingston Lacy's Japanese Garden.

Kingston Lacy, the National Trust property near Wimborne, was the first of the trust's properties to take part in the Sakura project, a Japanese initiative that is gifting around 6,500 cherry trees to parks, gardens and schools across the country.

Kingston Lacy head gardener Andrew Hunt said: "A cherry tree in full blossom is one of the most spectacular sights of the spring, made all the more beautiful by its relatively short flowering season – in Japan it represents the fragility of life as well as a new beginning.

"With a range of varieties at Kingston Lacy visitors will be able to enjoy the season throughout the spring."

The seven-acre Japanese Garden was originally created in the early 1900s, by Henrietta Bankes, a keen horticulturalist and mother of the last family owner of Kingston Lacy.

Henrietta’s daughter Viola described the garden as ‘a perfectly ordered paradise’, but it became overgrown in the second half of the 20th century.

After the National Trust took over the estate, it recreated the garden as a peaceful and tranquil haven that captures the essence and principles of Japanese garden design.

The 100 cherry trees will join existing cherry trees, as well as bamboo, acers and ginkgo, which surround a traditional tea garden, with tea house, stone lanterns and winding paths.

Three varieties of cherry (Beni-yutaka, Taihaku, and Somei-yoshino), were chosen for this project.

Taihaku (known as the Great White cherry) is particularly relevant as the variety became extinct in Japan but was reintroduced to its homeland by Britain’s Collingwood 'Cherry' Ingram in 1932.

The planting forms part of the National Trust’s major celebration of cherry blossom, #BlossomWatch, launched last year to emulate Hanami, the ancient Japanese tradition of viewing and celebrating blossom as the first sign of spring.

Visit https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/kingston-lacy/features/cherry-blossom-at-kingston-lacy for more information.