I have a Kwanzan Flowering Cherry (Prunus serrulata ‘Kwanzan”) tree that my deceased son gave me seven years ago for Mother’s day. It has flowered every year since he gave it to me except last year and now it looks like this year it is not going to have flowers either. I have not done anything different to it over the years. It did seem to have a growth spurt last year and I thought that was why it didn’t flower. We always remove the suckers when they start and we do not have mulch around it. Any advise you can give me will be greatly appreciated.
The long cold winter just past may have caused the buds to fail. If you have been pruning late in the year, after the end of May you are removing the buds for the next years flowers. If it isn’t getting at least 7 hours of direct sun a day then it won’t have the energy to flower. If all of the above is not the issue, then it probably needs some food to give it the energy it needs to flower. Espoma Flower-Tone food should be placed into holes in the ground around the tree. This should be done right away and every spring as soon as the ground can be worked. Plants won’t flower until the have the extra energy to do so. Here’s more on spring feeding.