D.C.’s magnificent cherry blossoms draw more than 1.6 million visitors to the Tidal Basin each spring. Anticipation builds as the buds progress through a six-stage bloom process on the way to peak bloom.
On Monday, the National Park Service said the blossoms buds reached their fifth stage, puffy white, which is one away from peak bloom. At this stage, the buds swell and are on the brink of bursting out.
Wow! This weekend’s warm weather pushed the Yoshino cherry trees to Stage Five: Puffy White. The blossoms are coming out, we’re just waiting on them to open. We expect Peak Bloom this week!
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— National Mall NPS (@NationalMallNPS) March 23, 2026
On average, peak bloom occurs within three to five days of this stage. But in past years, blossoms have jumped from Stage 5 to 6 in as little as two days during abnormally warm weather and taken as long as eight days during cold weather. Temperatures are forecast to be cooler than normal through midweek, but highs near 60 on Wednesday and into the 70s on Thursday could allow peak bloom to occur by the weekend, if not before.
Last year, the blossoms also reached Stage 5 on March 23 and peak bloom on March 28.
This year is set to bring the seventh-straight earlier-than-normal peak bloom, propelled by much warmer-than-normal March temperatures. The bloom is also poised to happen before most predictions had said it would. Many said the peak would occur in early April.
NPS declares peak bloom when 70 percent of the Yoshino cherry blossoms around the Tidal Basin are open.
Peak bloom typically lasts three to seven days. Cool, cloudy and calm weather helps preserve the blossoms, while heat, wind and rain can shorten the display by knocking petals from the trees.
Stages of peak bloom
Here are the stages of bloom, according to the Park Service:
- Stage 1 — Green buds: The first visible sign that the flowering process is underway: Small green buds appear. (reached March 11)
- Stage 2 — Florets visible: Individual flower structures or florets become visible within the bud. (reached March 13)
- Stage 3 — Extension of florets: The florets lengthen as the bud swells. (reached March 16)
- Stage 4 — Peduncle elongation: The small stems supporting the blossoms lengthen. (reached March 21)
- Stage 5 — Puffy white: Buds swell, as if they’re about to pop. (current stage, reached March 23)
- Stage 6 — Peak bloom: 70 percent of Yoshino blossoms open.
Peak bloom predictions
Several local organizations made projections for this year’s peak bloom — they all fall within a nine-day stretch from March 30 to April 7. Here are the forecasts:
- Capital Weather Gang: April 3 to 7
- National Park Service: March 29 to April 1
- NBC4: March 30 to April 5
- WUSA9: April 2
Peak bloom dates in recent years
The blossoms have peaked earlier than normal in each of the past six years:
- 2025: March 28
- 2024: March 17 (tied for second-earliest on record)
- 2023: March 23
- 2022: March 21
- 2021: March 28
- 2020: March 20 (tied for third-earliest on record)
- Average peak bloom date over past 30 years: March 29
- Average peak bloom date since 1921: April 2
- Earliest peak bloom: March 15, 1990
- Latest peak bloom: April 18, 1958
Previous updates
March 21: On Saturday, the buds reached their fourth stage, peduncle elongation, according to the National Park Service. At this stage, the small stems supporting the blossoms lengthen.
ATTENTION EVERYONE! We have Peduncle Elongation. I repeat, Stage 4: Peduncle Elongation. The cherry blossoms have reached the 4th of 6 stages on the path to Peak Bloom.
— National Mall NPS (@NationalMallNPS) March 21, 2026
On average, peak bloom occurs about four to 10 days after this stage. Last year, the blossom buds reached peduncle elongation on March 20, one day earlier than this year, and reached peak bloom on March 28.
How fast the buds progress through the fifth stage, puffy blossoms, and reach peak bloom will depend on the weather. A sunny Saturday with highs in the 60s followed by a toasty Sunday with highs above 80 could allow the buds to reach puffy blossoms by Monday. Then, a few days of cooler weather could slow the bloom process down a bit. Still, it’s possible the blossoms are near or at peak bloom by next weekend, on the early side of projections.
March 16: On Monday, the buds reached their third stage, extension of florets, marking the halfway point in the bloom process — according to the National Park Service.
Oh, we’re halfway there! The cherry blossoms have reached Florets Extended, the 3rd of 6 stages.
— National Mall NPS (@NationalMallNPS) March 16, 2026
The buds are now one stage ahead of where they were at the same time last year, propelled by March temperatures that are running more than 7 degrees above average. But colder weather is set to put the brakes on the bloom process.
Generally below-average temperatures are projected over the next two weeks, meaning the second half of the bloom process will probably take longer than the first. Still, some mild days in the mix will push the bloom cycle ahead.
It’s possible that the buds will reach the next stage, peduncle elongation, by early next week. Peak bloom often happens about five to 10 days after this stage, which would put it at either the tail end of March or the first several days of April.
March 13 (Stage 2): On March 13, the blossom buds reached their second stage, florets visible, according to the National Park Service. At this stage, little flowers inside the buds first become visible. The buds bolted to this stage after five straight warm days in the 70s or higher, including records of 84 on Tuesday and 86 on Wednesday.
Stage 2! The Yoshino cherry blossoms are now at Florets Visible, the 2nd of 6 stages. The weather will play a big role in how quickly we get to Peak Bloom, so stay tuned.
— National Mall NPS (@NationalMallNPS) March 13, 2026
The sharp drop in temperatures Thursday, along with the snow, will have little effect on the blossom buds. They are not vulnerable to freeze damage until they reach Stage 4 or 5 in the bloom process.
Last year, the buds didn’t reach Stage 2 until March 16, three days later than this year. Peak bloom then occurred March 28, after unseasonably warm weather mid-month. The buds are not expected to reach peak bloom as fast this year because generally cooler weather is forecast over the next two weeks. Peak bloom projections remain between the end of March and first week of April.
March 11 (Stage 1): The bloom process officially began. Fueled by four straight abnormally warm days in the 70s and 80s, the blossom buds reached their first stage: green buds, the National Park Service declared.
LET’S GO!
Small green buds are appearing on the Yoshino cherry trees, marking the 1st of 6 stages on the way to peak bloom.
— National Mall NPS (@NationalMallNPS) March 11, 2026
The bloom process started later than usual after much colder-than-normal weather from December through February. Often, the cherry trees reach the green bud stage earlier, in late February or the first week of March.
The buds got off to a late start last year as well, also reaching Stage 1 on March 11. But, propelled by warmer-than-normal weather, they accelerated toward a March 28 peak bloom. The 17-day progression between the first and last stage was among the fastest on record.
With cooler conditions expected during the middle part of March this year, the bloom process will probably unfold more slowly, with peak bloom expected between the end of March and the first week of April.
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