Washington’s famed cherry blossoms reached peak bloom at near record speed 11 days ago and have lingered nearly as long as they ever have. A seesaw weather pattern — which switched from abnormally warm to rather chilly — has been the driver of this fast-developing but enduring bloom.
While the blossoms are starting to fade, at least some should still be blooming into Sunday and reaching a third straight weekend, which is practically unheard of.
The National Park Service does not keep records of bloom lengths at the Tidal Basin, but Matthew Morrison, an arborist for the Park Service, said this year’s bloom is about as long-lasting as it gets.
Cherry blossoms have the potential to last two weeks but are at the mercy of the weather. Hot weather, freezing temperatures, strong winds and heavy rain make the flower petals fall off faster and shorten the bloom period.
But since the Park Service announced peak bloom March 17, the second-earliest date on record, temperatures have been slightly cooler than normal, prolonging the bloom. High temperatures have mostly hovered in the 50s, while nighttime lows have mainly settled in the 30s — cool enough to preserve the blossoms but not cold enough to damage them. And while there have been bouts of wind and rain, they have been mild enough for the blossoms to withstand.
The forecast through the weekend calls for continued chilly weather, good news for the remaining blossoms.
D.C.-based photographer David Coleman has photographed the blossoms for the past 14 years and has recorded the bloom cycles on his website. He said the 2013 and 2014 blooms were particularly short, lasting only about five days. Both were late blooms, April 9 and 10, respectively. Late blooms are more susceptible to warm weather, which shortens the bloom period.
But during the 2019 bloom, he said, cool weather kept the blossom show running over two consecutive weekends. That bloom lasted about 10 days, from April 1 to 10. Coleman added that early blooms in 2022 and 2023 were also long-lasting.
While this year’s blossoms are still hanging on, their days are numbered.
The Park Service said green leaves are starting to emerge on the cherry trees, a sign the bloom period will soon end.
“The cherry blossoms are slowly fading,” the Park Service wrote on X on Tuesday. “Walking the paths under a gently rain of petals, you can notice bare patches in the canopy. Once bright white clouds of blossoms are giving way to green leaves sprouting towards the sky. The stages of spring continue.”
When inspecting the blossoms Wednesday, Coleman said they’re “starting to look a bit tired.”
Personal observations
I’ve photographed cherry blossoms at the Tidal Basin since 2004 and have noticed that the bloom periods can vary greatly depending on the weather. For example, on April 3, 2006, warm weather and a severe thunderstorm with strong winds blasted the blossoms from the trees. That was a dramatic end to the panorama.
On rare occasions, a hard freeze can curtail the bloom. From March 14 to 16 in 2017, freezing temperatures killed about 50 percent of the blossoms. I’ve seen that happen only once in my two decades of photographing them.
This year’s blossoms may have only a few days left, so it’s still worth paying a visit to the Tidal Basin if you haven’t already. After all, this will be your last chance to see the beloved cherry tree nicknamed “Stumpy” before it is cut down.
Jason Samenow contributed to this report.
