Just like with the last three years, the cherry blossoms in Washington D.C. will most likely bloom early. Pretty soon the trees will burst with beautiful pink blooms that will attract visitors from all over the world. Here is this year’s cherry blossom forecast.
It’s Peak. The current prediction is that the cherry blossoms will bloom sometime between March 23-27. The 30 year average for the cherry blossoms peaking is March 31, so this is about a week early. The cherry blossoms already have buds with a green color so this often indicates that the blooming process is about to begin even though it is earlier than the norm.
Where To See It. The cherry blossoms that are located around the Tidal Basin are expected to bloom first. It’s been predicted that around 70% should peak before March 27. If there is a winter storm, like there was last year, it could change where the cherry blossoms peak first as some blossoms may receive damage.
Working With Mother Nature. For those who don’t live in or around Washington D.C., it can be difficult to actually see the cherry blossoms. This is because that experts can only predict when it will peak. This can differ quite a bit from when it does happen. On top of that, the blooms only tend to last for about a week. If inclement weather occurs it can cut the season short by making the petals fall off ahead of time.
How Things Have Changed. During the years 2013, 2014 and 2015, cherry blossoms didn’t peak until the second week of April. This had to do with the fact that March consistently received cold weather during the month of March. From 1921 through 1950, the average for cherry blossoms to peak was on April 4. The earliest bloom to occur that’s on record, was on March 15, 1990. The latest one to occur on record was on April 18, 1958.
While it is difficult to predict when the cherry blossoms will peak, we can get some clues based on the weather. When cold weather occurs sooner than expected, it causes the trees to go dormant early which then causes them to blossom early as the temperatures start to warm up. What this means is that if there are very frigid temperatures in December, then there is a good chance that we will see the cherry blossoms bloom early like they probably will this year. For those that really love the cherry blossoms, they can also attend the National Cherry Blossom Festival that will occur from March 20 through April 15 this year.
