Horai-Sakura-20200312

The large cherry tree at Mukojima Elementary School is a prefectural-designated natural monument known as "Mukojima Winter Cherry Blossom of Hofu City." Its buds are reddish-purple, and when the flowers bloom, they are pale reddish-purple but later become slightly deeper in color. They typically bloom from late February to mid-March. On October 8, 2018, it was officially recognized as a new horticultural variety named "Horai Sakura" by the Flower Association of Japan. This marks the 14th new cherry blossom variety recognized nationwide and the first in Yamaguchi Prefecture. In Hofu, this cherry tree is famous for its early blooming, reaching full bloom every year around the time of the elementary school graduation ceremonies. It has become a symbol of sending off the graduates. While detailed records of this tree’s history are unknown, there is a story that it was planted about 100 years ago by the graduates of the time.