Japanese cherry pip sent into space grows into super-tree back on earth

A sapling grown from a cherry pip sent into space as part of an education experiment has stunned scientists in Japan by blooming far earlier than its earth-bound relatives.

According to botanists, cherry trees generally take about a decade from the time they sprout before buds first appear. The cherry pip that was sent to the International Space Station five years ago has achieved that just four years after sprouting.

"It is difficult for us to judge why this has happened, but one reason the tree has grown so fast may be related to space rays," said Kaori Tomita-Yokotani, a researcher at the University of Tsukuba.

"We have to study this further and repeat our experiments on earth to try to understand the mechanisms that are at work."

The Space Cherry project was dreamed up by Japan Manned Space Systems as a project with a uniquely Japanese angle for the astronaut Koichi Wakata.

A total of 265 cherry stones from the famous Chujohimeseigan-zakura cherry tree, in the grounds of Ganjoji Temple in Higashiomi, were selected for the experiment. The tree is believed to be 1,250 years old and is a variant of a wild cherry that has previously defied efforts to produce young trees from its fruit.

After Wakata arrived aboard the ISS in 2008, he began a series of experiments, including the Space Cherry, and returned to earth in July 2009 with the fruits of those labours.