Photo Gallery: Cherry Blossoms
Cherry blossoms frame a sunset view of the Washington Monument in Washington, D.C. The blooming of the pink and white blossoms heralds spring’s arrival in the nation’s capital, where hundreds of thousands of visitors flock each year to visit the National Cherry Blossom Festival.
Photo Gallery: Cherry Blossoms
In full bloom, an ornamental cherry tree branch extends out over a moat at the Imperial Palace in Tokyo, Japan. The flowering cherry tree, or sakura, is one of the most exalted flowering plants in Japan, where the blossoms’ short but beautiful blooming time is a symbol for the evanescence of human life.
Photo Gallery: Cherry Blossoms
A prothonotary warbler adds a splash of gold to a tableau of cherry blossoms along the Tidal Basin in Washington, D.C. The famed cherry trees were given to the U.S. capital city by Japan in 1912. More than 3,000 trees—and 12 different varieties—made the oversea journey from Yokohama to the District of Columbia.
Photo Gallery: Cherry Blossoms
Cherry trees exploding into bloom line the Tidal Basin in Washington, D.C. The capital’s annual National Cherry Blossom Festival celebrates the arrival of the blooms—and, unofficially, spring. Timing the festival is tricky, though, since the opening of the buds depends on weather conditions. Unseasonably warm temperatures mean the blooms arrive early; unseasonably cool weather delays the display.
Photo Gallery: Cherry Blossoms
Rain doesn’t deter a walker from strolling the Tidal Basin in Washington, D.C., during the short blooming life of ornamental cherry trees. There are 12 different varieties of ornamental, or flowering, cherry trees in the District of Columbia. Ornamental cherry trees do not produce fruit.
Photo Gallery: Cherry Blossoms
Maintaining the 3,000-plus cherry trees that blossom each spring in Washington, D.C., is a big job for the National Park Service. Every year, Tree Crew members prune the trees, treat bark wounds, monitor for insects and disease, and replace any trees lost to old age or other problems.
Photo Gallery: Cherry Blossoms
Colorful cherry blossoms grace the fertile foothills of the Alps near Verona, Italy. The blossoms emerge from buds in early spring.
Photo Gallery: Cherry Blossoms
A bloom-laden cherry tree brightens the garden of a geisha theater in Kyoto, Japan. Hanami festivals celebrate the arrival each spring of cherry blossoms, or sakura. Many Japanese head to parks and temples for flower-viewing parties.
Photo Gallery: Cherry Blossoms
Vivid Yoshino cherry (Prunus x yedoensis) blossoms carpet the ground in Waynesboro, Pennsylvania. Yoshino cherry blossoms first bloom pink, then fade to a soft white.
Photo Gallery: Cherry Blossoms
Cherry blossoms frame a picture-perfect view of the Jefferson Memorial across the Tidal Basin in Washington, D.C. According to the National Park Service, there are exactly 1,678 cherry trees surrounding the Tidal Basin—and more than 2,000 others nearby.
Photograph by Stephen St. John
