Cherry Blossom Watch Update: February 9, 2022

Welcome to the 2022 Cherry Blossom Watch! There’s not much yet to see on the trees, but the first peak bloom forecasts will come out in a few weeks.

Photo of Washington DC Cherry Blossoms - February 9, 2022 taken by David Coleman.
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2023 Peak Bloom

The NPS judged that the Yoshino cherry blossoms around the Tidal Basin reached peak bloom on March 23, 2023. They're now done for the year..

Welcome to the 2022 Cherry Blossom Watch!

It's a still, sunny, and crisp winter's morning at the Tidal Basin.

No peak bloom forecasts have been issued yet. The National Park Service will announce their initial peak bloom forecast on March 1.

So far, the area's winter has swung from much warmer than normal (December) to much cooler temperatures in January. February has started out a little cooler than normal.

Looking ahead over the next couple of weeks, the National Weather Service is thinking that we might see temperatures a little above average.

The tan/orange coverage over this area suggests temperatures a little above normal.

(For any new readers, here's why we care about temperatures: warmer than normal temperatures bring the bloom earlier; colder temperatures delay it. The historical average bloom is around the last few days of March into the first few days of April, but it varies year to year and can end up well outside that range.)

Here's how we're tracking so far this winter. The red line is the historical average temperature. You can see that the winter started above average, but then dipped (and stayed) below average for several weeks.

Here's a different way of looking at it, with the center line representing the historical average.

How It's Looking at the Tidal Basin This Morning

Here are some photos of how it's looking at the Tidal Basin this morning. For comparison, here's how things were looking about three years ago almost to the day.

There's not much to see on the trees yet. About two-thirds of the Tidal Basin is covered with a thin layer of ice, but that'll melt quickly over the warmer temperatures in the coming days. And the newly cleaned dome of the Jefferson Memorial is looking magnificent (and no more scaffolding!).

Photo of Washington DC Cherry Blossoms - February 9, 2022 taken by David Coleman.
Photo of Washington DC Cherry Blossoms - February 9, 2022 taken by David Coleman.
Photo of Washington DC Cherry Blossoms - February 9, 2022 taken by David Coleman.
Photo of Washington DC Cherry Blossoms - February 9, 2022 taken by David Coleman.
The beautifully clean dome of the Jefferson Memorial.
Photo of Washington DC Cherry Blossoms - February 9, 2022 taken by David Coleman.
During the bloom, you wouldn't be able to see the Washington Monument through the blossoms from this vantage point.
Photo of Washington DC Cherry Blossoms - February 9, 2022 taken by David Coleman.
This stretch, from the Japanese Lantern down to the MLK Memorial, has some of the oldest of the trees.
Photo of Washington DC Cherry Blossoms - February 9, 2022 taken by David Coleman.
Photo of Washington DC Cherry Blossoms - February 9, 2022 taken by David Coleman.
Photo of Washington DC Cherry Blossoms - February 9, 2022 taken by David Coleman.
Photo of Washington DC Cherry Blossoms - February 9, 2022 taken by David Coleman.
Photo of Washington DC Cherry Blossoms - February 9, 2022 taken by David Coleman.
Photo of Washington DC Cherry Blossoms - February 9, 2022 taken by David Coleman.
Someone was celebrating last night!
Photo of Washington DC Cherry Blossoms - February 9, 2022 taken by David Coleman.
Photo of Washington DC Cherry Blossoms - February 9, 2022 taken by David Coleman.
“Happy birthday President Roosevelt from the FDR Memorial Legacy Committee.” FDR's birthday is January 30 (he was born in 1882).
Photo of Washington DC Cherry Blossoms - February 9, 2022 taken by David Coleman.
These old, gnarled trees that arch over the path are right next to the MLK Memorial. They've lost some of their largest and most precarious branches in recent years, but they still look wonderful in bloom.

And, for fun, some black and white shots (also taken this morning). If you're a fan of black and white, I have more from around the area here.

Photo of Washington DC Cherry Blossoms - February 9, 2022 taken by David Coleman.

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5 thoughts on “Cherry Blossom Watch Update: February 9, 2022”

  1. We were coming for the first time in March 2020. And then the world shut down.
    But it’s turned back on , and we will be coming ( maybe a little early March 17 – 21 ) this year. Yay‼️

    Reply

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