Washington, D.C. | Peak Cherry Blossom Blooming in 2018

When you go to Washington, D.C., there’s one thing that no matter where you go on the National Mall, you will see: The Cherry Blossom trees.

So where did this gorgeous collection of pink trees originate? Are they native to D.C.?

Actually, the original 3,000 cherry blossom trees were a gift from the Mayor of Tokyo, Yukio Ozaki, in 1912. In 1910, there was a first attempt to get 2,000 cherry blossoms, but the trees did not survive the journey. So, 2 years later, with the help of Dr. Jokichi Takamine (chemist and founder of Sankyo Co., Ltd.), Dr. David Fairchild (U.S. Department of Agriculture,) Eliza Scidmore (National Geographic Society), and First Lady Helen Herron Taft. The gift was meant to honor a long friendship between Japan and the US. The gesture has been reciprocated to and from Japan a few times over the years.

Every year, there is a festival in the spring to honor these trees and the kinship of the US and Japan. The Cherry Blossom Festival began in 1927. The first ladies have historically been involved in some way to the yearly festivities. It has grown and expanded a lot. Today the festival is about 4 weeks long and hosts around 1.5 million visitors!

So, what about your pictures?

Well, my collection of Cherry Blossom pictures are shown in this post. We went to D.C. the first week of April. As a result, we were in D.C. for the peak day, April 5th, 2018. D.C. in early spring is cold and rainy, but that didn’t stop these gorgeous trees from impressing this photographer. They really make the perfect frame for photos.