The iconic cherry trees decorating the nation’s capital will hit peak bloom between March 29 and April 1, the National Park Service predicted Thursday.
The agency declares peak bloom when 70 percent of the Yoshino blossoms around the Tidal Basin, the reservoir on the National Mall, have opened.
Kevin Griess, superintendent of National Mall and Memorial Parks, said the weather could affect peak bloom, noting this winter has been colder.
“Every spring, the National Cherry Blossom Festival does more than welcome a new season,” David Moran, chair of the board of directors for the National Cherry Blossom Festival, said at a news conference Thursday. “It brings a renewed sense of joy and vitality to our entire region.”
The annual festival commemorates the 3,000 cherry trees Japan gifted to the United States as a symbol of friendship in 1912.
Japan will gift an additional 250 cherry trees this year in honor of the United States’ 250th anniversary celebration, Masatsugu Odaira, minister for public affairs for the Embassy of Japan, said Thursday.
This year’s festival will run from March 20 to April 12 and will feature an opening ceremony of traditional Japanese sword dancers, a parade along Constitution Avenue, a “pink tie” fashion show at Union Station and a street party at Navy Yard.
The Washington Post’s Capital Weather Gang, which independently estimates peak bloom, predicted it could happen between April 3 and April 7, potentially more than a week later than last year. The last time peak bloom happened this late was April 5, 2018.
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