The Amur cherry is recommended for continental climates, I've seen a nice big one at the Finch Arboretum in Spokane (ponderosa pine country). However, the birchbark cherry is more striking visually.

Of course the seed supposedly from Kiev or nearby, could actually be from that area even though it is not native there. NS is planted very widely, and for one example, from my researches, somewhere near half of the NS seedlings offered for sale by nurseries here in the U.S are from seed collected from stands of NS growing in the U.S. But if the seed is indeed from the Kiev area, it may well be a strain that is acclimated to that area and may do well in a comparable area. Also, NS trees in one part of Europe may well be from seed that was collected in another, and possibly somewhat distant location. Dr. John Genys, a native of Lithuania who has done provenance trails of NS, once told me that for centuries there has been so much planting of NS from seed collected in one area of Europe and then planted in other areas of Europe, that learning where a seed was collected from may not yield a strain that is representative of a purely local geographic strain. Resin: it is my understanding that NS is generally very, very hardy, regardless of the area it is from, and that those from more southern European sources are not that much less cold hardy than those from more northern sources. But let me know if you have evidence to the contrary. --Spruce

Hi island. Our banquette was built (several years ago) by the same guy who did our cabinets. There is no back on it ... just loose pillows, which we sort of toss around depending on how many people are actually sitting on it. It does have storage. There are sliding doors on the long front of it (this is not easy storage to access but it's for the cookbooks I pull out once a year, etc.) and a "morgue" drawer that comes out from the end (where we keep all the dog leashes, collars, etc. Super handy storage!). I will take some measurements tonight or tomorrow for you, but I recall that the seat is about 19" tall after the cushion is on. I made the cushion extra thick, 4 inches, and raised it up a little because I prefer to sit a little higher at a table. The chairs came with the house and I sort of painted them on a whim. I used Annie Sloan's chalk paint, which was OK, although I'm not sure it was any better than any other kind of paint, other than not having to prime them first. They do seem to be wearing well though. Hope that helps for now. More to follow.

@baseballmom94 Who did you end up going with and what was your experience? My designer is recommending Kith or Shiloh for my bathroom vanities. Just curious your thoughts on what you actually decided on. Thanks!