Cherry Blossom Watch Update: March 31, 2018

If you head down to the Tidal Basin this weekend you won’t have any trouble whatsoever finding cherry blossoms out. The warm weather of the past few days has worked its magic in bringing more flowers out.

Photo of Washington DC Cherry Blossoms.
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The NPS determined that 70 percent of the blossoms reached the “puffy white” stage on April 1. That’s the final stage before peak bloom.

The cherry blossoms reached peak bloom on March 17, 2024. That's the second-earliest on record.

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Latest Updates on the 2024 Bloom
Peak Bloom Forecasts in Detail

If you head down to the Tidal Basin this weekend you won’t have any trouble whatsoever finding cherry blossoms out–there’s no need to go hunting anymore. The warm weather of the past few days has worked its magic in bringing more flowers out. The magnolias are well and truly open now, even the area’s daffodils are now coming out properly, and there’s even the odd early tulip flowering.

Nearly all the trees have at least some flowers on them, and many have quite a lot. But they’re not in full bloom yet. Over the coming week or so or more flowers will keep coming out.

At this point next weekend is shaping up nicely. Cooler temperatures will slow things down some but won’t stop things.

Keep reading below for suggestions on which weekends are looking good and how the magnolias at the Smithsonian Castle are doing.

Which Weekend?

Obviously, the trees don’t care what day of the week it is, but the reality is that many people can only visit on weekend. So I’ve been getting a lot of questions from readers asking about which weekend is best. Here’s a quick state of play. As usual, the further ahead we look the more uncertainty there is.

This weekend (March 31-April 1). You’ll find many flowers out but they’re not yet in full bloom. There’s no need to hunt in specific places–they’re all the way around the Tidal Basin. Take a look at the photos below for some shots from this morning to give an idea of what you can expect to see.

Next weekend (April 7-8). It’s shaping up to be the prime viewing weekend. Whether or not the cherry blossoms have reached their technical bloom by then, they’ll be looking lovely. Expect crowds (and the Cherry Blossom 10-miler). Right now, the weather forecast isn’t great, although that might change.

Weekend after (April 14-15). It’s looking likely that the cherry blossoms will have reached peak bloom by then. After peak bloom, they can last a week or more in the right conditions (cool, dry, calm) but can be hurried out in as little as 3-5 days in the wrong weather conditions (windy, rainy, warm, stormy). (Take a look at the photo timeline for some examples.) And springtime in this area can be a real mixed bag, potentially with all of those weather conditions. So the upshot is that it’s entirely possible that the cherry blossoms will still be looking beautiful that weekend, but there’s also risk that they’ll be chased out by adverse weather.

Snow???

After a lovely few days, it’s going to cool down a bit again. Current weather forecasts suggest there might even be a little snow Sunday night. It won’t cause a problem for the cherry blossoms. While they’re in advanced stages and many are potentially in their vulnerable to frost stage, it would need to get much colder than expected to cause any problems.

How Things Look This Morning

Here are some more photos taken this morning to give a sense of what you can expect to see this weekend.

DC Cherry Blossom Watch - March 31, 2018

DC Cherry Blossom Watch - March 31, 2018

DC Cherry Blossom Watch - March 31, 2018

DC Cherry Blossom Watch - March 31, 2018

DC Cherry Blossom Watch - March 31, 2018

DC Cherry Blossom Watch - March 31, 2018

DC Cherry Blossom Watch - March 31, 2018

DC Cherry Blossom Watch - March 31, 2018

DC Cherry Blossom Watch - March 31, 2018

DC Cherry Blossom Watch - March 31, 2018

DC Cherry Blossom Watch - March 31, 2018

DC Cherry Blossom Watch - March 31, 2018

DC Cherry Blossom Watch - March 31, 2018

DC Cherry Blossom Watch - March 31, 2018

DC Cherry Blossom Watch - March 31, 2018

DC Cherry Blossom Watch - March 31, 2018

DC Cherry Blossom Watch - March 31, 2018

DC Cherry Blossom Watch - March 31, 2018

DC Cherry Blossom Watch - March 31, 2018

Magnolias

The magnolias are looking magnificent. Here are some shots of the ones at the Smithsonian Castle this morning but are just starting move past their prime. They’re looking wonderful now, but if you plan to see them I’d recommend sooner rather than later. For now there’s only the occasional petal on the ground, but more of them will come off in coming days.

Magnolias at the Smithsonian Castle - March 31, 2018
Taken with a Sony a7r iii and Sony Distagon T* FE 35mm f/1.4 ZA lens.

Magnolias at the Smithsonian Castle - March 31, 2018

Magnolias at the Smithsonian Castle - March 31, 2018

Logistics

The Maine Ave parking lot (near the paddle boats) is still closed for parking to make way for the Welcome Area. It’s scheduled to remain closed until April 1, but given the late bloom I’d expect the Welcome Area’s residency to be extended.

The special one-way traffic restrictions are in place along Ohio Drive, so you can’t enter down by the John Ericsson Memorial (the Lincoln Memorial end). Instead, you’ll have to do the circuit around the Jefferson Memorial. You can still park there, although during the day midweek you’ll be battling for spaces with all the tour buses bring school groups on spring break and during the weekend there’s a lot of competition for spots. Which makes an argument for using alternative transportation, especially on weekends.

DC Cherry Blossom Watch Update: March 29, 2018
The special one-way traffic flow along Ohio Drive is now in place, so you can’t enter down by the John Ericsson Memorial. Instead you’ll have to go around the Jefferson Memorial.

Early Bloomers

I’ve been tracking this specific cluster of buds/flowers for a couple of weeks now. Here’s the latest shot. This tree is by the FDR Memorial. You can see it standing out in one of the wider shots above.

DC Cherry Blossom Watch - March 31, 2018
March 31, 2018.
DC Cherry Blossom Watch Update: March 29, 2018
March 29, 2018.
Cherry Blossom Watch Update: March 26, 2018
March 26, 2018.
DC Cherry Blossom Watch Update: March 23, 2018
March 23, 2018.
Cherry Blossom Watch Update: March 21, 2018
March 21, 2018.