Cherry Blossom Watch Update: April 10, 2019

The cherry blossoms are mostly done now. You can still find flowers out, but they’re fading fast. The good news, though, is that the warm temperatures of the past few days have helped push the Kwanzan cherry blossoms along.

Photo of Washington DC Cherry Blossoms taken by David Coleman.
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The cherry blossoms reached peak bloom on March 17, 2024. That's the second-earliest on record.

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Peak Bloom Forecasts in Detail

The cherry blossoms are close to done now. You can still find flowers out, but they’re fading fast. The good news, though, is that the warm temperatures of the past few days have helped push the Kwanzan cherry blossoms along. They’re not in full bloom just yet, but they should be looking lovely around the weekend through next week. You can see some photos from this morning below.

As to whether you can still see cherry blossoms, at this point, it’s very much a matter of expectations. If you visit expecting it to look how it looked last week, you’ll be disappointed. But if you’re happy just want to catch a glimpse of at least some cherry blossoms, you can still find some on the trees easily. The photos below give a more visual sense of what I mean.

As we head into and through the weekend, more of the petals will come down and the green leaves will come through. And the Kwanzans will continue opening up.

Be sure to check out the beautiful photos submitted by Cherry Blossom Watch reader this year. Two collections have posted so far (here and here, with more to come over the next couple of days.

How It’s Looking Today

It’s a gorgeous spring morning. Clear, calm, and cool.

If you head down to the Tidal Basin today, these photos taken this morning give a sense of what you can expect to see.

Washington DC Cherry Blossoms - April 10, 2019

Washington DC Cherry Blossoms - April 10, 2019

Washington DC Cherry Blossoms - April 10, 2019

Washington DC Cherry Blossoms - April 10, 2019

Washington DC Cherry Blossoms - April 10, 2019

Washington DC Cherry Blossoms - April 10, 2019

Washington DC Cherry Blossoms - April 10, 2019

Washington DC Cherry Blossoms - April 10, 2019

Washington DC Cherry Blossoms - April 10, 2019

Washington DC Cherry Blossoms - April 10, 2019

 

Washington DC Cherry Blossoms - April 10, 2019

Washington DC Cherry Blossoms - April 10, 2019

Washington DC Cherry Blossoms - April 10, 2019

Washington DC Cherry Blossoms - April 10, 2019

Washington DC Cherry Blossoms - April 10, 2019

Washington DC Cherry Blossoms - April 10, 2019

Washington DC Cherry Blossoms - April 10, 2019

Washington DC Cherry Blossoms - April 10, 2019

Washington DC Cherry Blossoms - April 10, 2019

Washington DC Cherry Blossoms - April 10, 2019

Washington DC Cherry Blossoms - April 10, 2019

Washington DC Cherry Blossoms - April 10, 2019

Washington DC Cherry Blossoms - April 10, 2019

Washington DC Cherry Blossoms - April 10, 2019

Washington DC Cherry Blossoms - April 10, 2019

Washington DC Cherry Blossoms - April 10, 2019

Washington DC Cherry Blossoms - April 10, 2019

Kwanzan Cherry Blossoms

The Kwanzan cherry blossoms bloom a week or two after the more famous Yoshino variety, but they’re especially pretty. You can find out more about them, including where they are around the Tidal Basin area, here.

The trees are starting to bloom now. They’re not in full bloom yet, but they should be looking lovely on the weekend through next week. These were taken this morning of one of the trees that is blooming just a little ahead of many of the others.

Washington DC Kwzanzan Cherry Blossoms - April 10, 2019

Washington DC Kwzanzan Cherry Blossoms - April 10, 2019

Washington DC Kwzanzan Cherry Blossoms - April 10, 2019

Washington DC Kwzanzan Cherry Blossoms - April 10, 2019

Washington DC Kwzanzan Cherry Blossoms - April 10, 2019

Logistics

The Tidal Basin’s parking lot by the paddle boats is now closed for the Cherry Blossom Festival Welcome Area. It will be closed through April 18.

Ohio Drive has been switched to the special one-way traffic pattern. You can still get to Ohio Drive, but you’ll have to go around the other side of the Tidal Basin, past the paddle boats, and enter by the Jefferson Memorial. According to one of the signs, the traffic pattern is due to stay in place until April 14.

If you’re coming in from the Arlington side of the Potomac, be aware that Memorial Bridge is undergoing major structural repairs. It is still open, but there are temporary traffic lanes that can impact traffic flow and where you can turn once you get off the bridge. So using one of the other bridges might be a better bet.