Current 2019 Peak Bloom Forecasts:
National Park Service: April 3-6
Washington Post's Capital Weather Gang: April 1-5
It has been a cold and dreary day, even before the rain set in, but there's finally something to report on the trees themselves. Some--but not all--are starting to show their first green buds poking through. It's the first visual sign that the cherry blossom bloom process is now rolling. That's a bit later than it has been in the last couple of years, and some cold weather coming this week will slow things down some more.
UPDATE: The NPS determined that 70% of the Yoshino cherry trees had reached the green bud stage on March 5.
The folks at the National Park Service are scheduled to issue their initial peak bloom prediction for 2019 at a press conference this coming Wednesday. So stay tuned for more updates over the coming week.
This time last year, we'd just seen off a major windstorm that had damaged a number of trees around the area.
Temperatures
Despite some very cold spells in January, so far the winter temperatures have been averaging a little above normal.
Here's how the pattern looks on a day-by-day basis. The blue line represents daily averages since the beginning of December; the red line represents the historical averages.
And here's how that translates into monthly averages:
- March: -2.5° (as of March 3)
- February: +3.2°
- February: +3.4 (as of Feb. 25)
- January: +1.2°
- December: +3.8°
How It's Looking at the Tidal Basin Today
It's cold and dreary (and now damp).
Where to Stay for the Cherry Blossoms?
If you're visiting from out of town and looking for ideas on where to stay, I've put together some suggestions here.
Latest Updates
How to Get Updates on the 2019 Cherry Blossoms
There are several ways to keep up to date with Cherry Blossom Watch updates.
CherryBlossomWatch.com This website is Cherry Blossom Watch HQ. New updates post here first. They're also more detailed and include more current photos than the other options below. So be sure to bookmark and check back often. If you'd like to receive instant automatic notifications directly from the website when new updates are posted, take a look at the browser notification option below.
Instagram. Follow the dedicated Instagram feed at @cherryblossomwatch. The posts are usually shorter and less detailed, but they include freshly taken photos and post more quickly. (And, if you're interested, you can also follow my main travel photography account at @havecamerawilltraveldc.)
Facebook. Follow the Cherry Blossom Watch Facebook page. This is a good way to know when new updates are posted on the website, but because of the way Facebook's newsfeed algorithm works, there's no guarantee that every update will show up in your feed.
Email Newsletter. To the right of the page (or bottom, if you're using a mobile device) you can find a signup form for the 2019 cherry blossom watch email newsletter. This is sent out as a digest of the latest updates every week or so when new updates have been posted. Please note that the email lists do not carry over year to year, so even if you signed up in 2018 you'll still need to sign up again for the 2019 list.
Browser Notifications. On desktop web browsers you can click on the red bell icon at the bottom right of the screen to sign up for push notifications. When new updates are posted you'll get a notification automatically right in your browser. Works in Chrome, Safari, and Firefox only, for now.
RSS. RSS feed
David Boley says
thanks for the info
David says
You're welcome!
Susan Arko says
Thanks for this.
David says
You're welcome!
Ming says
The advisary is informative for out-of-state visitors.