Type: Floral Packaging: Bag Origin: Japan Description: Japanese are wild about any kind of product made with cherry blossoms (called sakura). Cherry trees bloom in April, and represent the first signs of Spring. For centuries, cherry blossoms were pickled in order to preserve them for occasions during other seasons of the year. As fresh cherry blossoms can be harvested only once a year, Japanese people started pickling them in salt and ume plum vinegar in order to be able to enjoy the sakura flavor throughout the year. In the old days, many households with gardens and cherry trees used to make their own pickled sakura. Nowadays most people will buy salt-pickled sakura flowers from one of the few companies that still make this product.