Cherry Blossom Watch Update: January 14, 2019

Winter finally arrived, with a snowstorm that dumped around 10 inches of snow. But so far, temperatures have averaged warmer than normal.

Photo of DC Cherry Blossoms - January 13, 2019 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.

RELATED:
Latest Updates on the 2024 Bloom
Peak Bloom Forecasts in Detail

Welcome to the 2019 Cherry Blossom Watch!

It’s still too early when the bloom will be this year, and no predictions have been issued yet. The National Park Service and Washington Post forecasts typically come around the beginning of March.

It’s still very early, and there’s plenty of time for things to change, but so far winter temperatures have been above normal. December averaged nearly 4 degrees above normal, and a warm start to this morning has helped January so far to be tracking about 6 degrees above normal. Looking ahead a week or two, the National Weather Service is predicting things to cool down quite a bit. For a bit more context, here are how temperatures tracked relative to peak bloom for the past several years:

DecemberJanuaryFebruaryMarchPeak Bloom Date
2023-24+3.8+2.3+4.4+9.4March 17
2022-23-1.6+7.7+6.8+1.5ˤMarch 23
2021-22+5.9-2.9+2.6+5.0March 21
2020-21+1.7+2.6-1.2+4.2March 28
2019-20+2.4+6.4+4.8+7.3*March 20
2018-19+3.8+1.2+3.2+0.0April 1
2017-18-0.5-0.3+6.3-3.2April 5
2016-17+2.1+6.1+8.7-0.7*March 25
2015-16+11.5-1.1+0.9+6.5*March 25
2014-15+4.0-0.4-8.7-1.5April 10
2013-14+2.6-3.8-1.2-3.9April 10
2012-13+5.9+4.3-0.7-3.0April 9
2011-12+4.9+4.7+5.3+10March 20
2010-11--1.3+3.6-0.9March 29
Data sources: National Weather Service / National Park Service.
ˤ = partial month, in progress
* = up until peak bloom

Over the past few days winter finally arrived with the first big snowstorm of the season (although we did have an inch or two of snow back in November, too). The photos on this page were taken yesterday after it had been snowing pretty steadily since the previous evening. By the time the snow finished about 8-10 hours later, the measurement station at DCA, the airport right across the Potomac about a mile from the Tidal Basin had measured 10.3 inches. Areas just slightly north had measured up to 12 inches.

There’s not going to be much to report for a while, but I’ll be checking in from the Tidal Basin from time to time in the coming weeks. And if there’s anything new to report, I’ll post an update. In the meantime, though, we’ll have to see how the rest of the winter plays out. And, as always, I keep the peak bloom forecasts page updated with the latest predictions. So stay tuned!

How It Looks

These were all taken yesterday (January 13).

DC Cherry Blossoms - January 13, 2019
Tidal Basin | January 13, 2019
DC Cherry Blossoms - January 13, 2019
Tidal Basin | January 13, 2019
DC Cherry Blossoms - January 13, 2019
Tidal Basin | January 13, 2019
DC Cherry Blossoms - January 13, 2019
Tidal Basin | January 13, 2019
DC Cherry Blossoms - January 13, 2019
Tidal Basin | January 13, 2019
DC Cherry Blossoms - January 13, 2019
Tidal Basin | January 13, 2019
DC Cherry Blossoms - January 13, 2019
Tidal Basin | January 13, 2019
DC Cherry Blossoms - January 13, 2019
Tidal Basin | January 13, 2019
DC Cherry Blossoms - January 13, 2019
Tidal Basin | January 13, 2019
DC Cherry Blossoms - January 13, 2019
Tidal Basin | January 13, 2019
DC Cherry Blossoms - January 13, 2019
Tidal Basin | January 13, 2019