The Cherry Blossom Indicator Tree: What It Is & How to Find It

The so-called indicator tree reliably blooms a week to ten days ahead of most of the cherry blossoms around the Tidal Basin. Here’s how to find it.

Photo of Washington DC Cherry Blossoms.
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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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Not every cherry tree around the Tidal Basin is on the same schedule. Some can be a day or two ahead or behind others. Some can be several days or even a week ahead.

But there’s one cherry tree that’s consistently leading the pack.

Because of this distinctive trait, it has become known as the indicator tree, and it’s used to get an idea of where the other trees will be soon.

It’s not the most majestic or picturesque of the old trees, and it’s had a number of amputations over the years, leaving only one main limb. But for whatever reason, we can count on this particular tree to provide advance warning.

It’s also one of the key pieces of the puzzle that the National Park Service horticulturists use in making their peak bloom predictions.

Photo of Cherry Blossom Indicator Tree - April 2, 2015 taken by David Coleman.
Photo by David Coleman / CHERRYBLOSSOMWATCH

How Long Between the Indicator Tree Blooming and the Rest of the Trees?

The indicator tree is reliably ahead of the others, but how far ahead can vary. There used to be a general rule of thumb that it was a week to ten days, but that’s not always accurate.

Particularly with early blooms and warm weather, the spread between the indicator tree booming and the others blooming can become a bit erratic. As an example, in 2023, there were flowers on the indicator tree on March 1 (photos here), but the others didn’t reach peak bloom until March 23. There have been other years where the spread has been significantly shorter.

So about the best we can reliably be sure of is that the blooming is coming soon. But without other context (i.e., temperatures), it’s hard to say based solely on the indicator tree blooming whether it’ll be a week later, 10 days later, or a few weeks later.

Where to Find the Indicator Tree

If you’re here a little ahead of the peak bloom but still want to see some blossoms, it’s a good place to look.

There’s no sign on it, and unless it happens to be covered in flowers while everything around it isn’t, you really have to know where it is.

So here’s how to find it.

Cherry Blossoms - April 6, 2015
Photo by David Coleman / CHERRYBLOSSOMWATCH

It’s located just east of the Jefferson Memorial. This area of the Tidal Basin used to be a swimming beach, but it looks much less inviting for a dip now. You can get to it easily from either the Jefferson Memorial or from the other direction from Ohio Drive SW.

This first shot is taken from the end of the Outlet Bridge on Ohio Drive SW looking southwest toward the Jefferson Memorial (you can see the top of the dome in the background).

The walkway splits into three, with one path to the left going alongside the road and another path to the right heading towards the water of the Tidal Basin.

cherry blossom indicator tree-03
Photo by David Coleman / CHERRYBLOSSOMWATCH

The indicator tree is between the two paths to the right. It’s the first old-looking tree you come across and is standing right next to a large holly tree.

cherry blossom indicator tree-01
Photo by David Coleman / CHERRYBLOSSOMWATCH
cherry blossom indicator tree-02
Photo by David Coleman / CHERRYBLOSSOMWATCH
cherry blossom indicator tree-04
Photo by David Coleman / CHERRYBLOSSOMWATCH
Indicator Tree tag number
The tree ID tag on the southern side of the tree. (This tag has since been removed.) Photo by David Coleman / CHERRYBLOSSOMWATCH
Photo of Washington DC Cherry Blossoms.
Photo by David Coleman / CHERRYBLOSSOMWATCH

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