Heather Curtis
WMAL.com
WASHINGTON (WMAL)– Nothing means spring in D.C. more than blooming cherry blossom trees, and the wait to see them is ending. The National Park Service predicts peak bloom, when 70 percent of the trees are flowering, will be March 31 to April 3.
Those dates could change depending on the weather. National Mall Superintendent Gay Vietzke said the weather and a physical examination of the trees are the main factors in determining peak bloom. The average date for it is April 4. Vietzke said they have come out as early as mid-March and as late as mid-April.
This year’s peak bloom corresponds with the Cherry Blossom Festival which runs from March 20 to April 17. Each year around 1.5 million people from all over the world attend the festival, which includes a parade and a kite festival. This year the National Park Service’s centennial will be celebrated, along with the 104th anniversary of the year Japan gave the city 3,000 of the flowering trees.
The D.C. Circulator has added extra stops to make it easier for people to get to the Tidal Basin to see the trees.
Copyright 2016 by WMAL.com. All Rights Reserved. (PHOTO: File photo by Heather Curtis)
