A Century of Cherry Blossoms: The National Cherry Blossom Festival's Enduring Legacy

Every spring, Washington, D.C. transforms into a pink-and-white wonderland as over a million visitors flock to the National Cherry Blossom Festival. While the festival offers parades, cultural performances, and fireworks, the true star is nature's own spectacle: thousands of cherry trees bursting into bloom along the Tidal Basin. The year 2012 marked the 100th anniversary of this living symbol of friendship between Japan and the United States.

A Gift From Japan

The story begins in the early 20th century when Tokyo Mayor Yukio Ozaki gifted the first Japanese cherry trees to the U.S. capital. In Japan, cherry blossoms—sakura—have been revered for centuries. The tradition of hanami, or flower viewing, draws crowds to parks, shrines, and temples for picnics beneath the blooming boughs. This cultural practice inspired the vision of bringing that beauty to America.

Eliza Scidmore's Dream

The driving force behind Washington's cherry trees was one persistent woman: Eliza Ruhamah Scidmore (pronounced Sidmore). A journalist, photographer, and the first woman on the National Geographic Society's board, Scidmore fell in love with Japan's cherry blossoms during her travels. In 1885, she proposed planting them along the swampy Tidal Basin. For 24 years, park superintendents rejected her plans.

Finally, in 1909, botanist David Fairchild and First Lady Helen Taft championed the project. Tokyo offered 2,000 additional trees, but the 1910 shipment arrived infested with pests and was burned on President Taft's orders. Undeterred, Japanese officials sent 3,020 healthy trees of 12 cultivars in 1912—descendants of Japan's finest stock.

Washington's Cherry Trees Take Root

On March 27, 1912, First Lady Helen Taft and Viscountess Chinda, wife of the Japanese ambassador, planted the first two trees on the Tidal Basin's north bank. Those original trees, marked by a bronze plaque, still stand near the John Paul Jones Memorial. A 1927 schoolchildren's ceremony honored the planting, but the first official "Cherry Blossom Festival" wasn't organized until 1935.

World War II paused the festival, but it resumed in 1947. The war had devastated the Arakawa River cherry groves in Tokyo—the source of Washington's trees. In 1952, the U.S. National Park Service sent budwood to help restore them. Decades later, cuttings from the 1912 survivors were propagated to preserve their genetic line, and in 2011, the Park Service gifted 120 propagated trees to the Japan Cherry Blossom Association.

The display expanded dramatically in 1965 when First Lady Lady Bird Johnson accepted 3,800 American-grown trees from Japan. Many now grace the Washington Monument grounds.

Cherry Tree Varieties

Of the original 12 varieties, two dominate today: Yoshino and Kwanzan. Yoshino cherries encircle the Tidal Basin with masses of single white blossoms. Intermingled are Akebono cherries, a Yoshino mutation bearing pale pink single blooms.

Kwanzan cherries steal the show with large, long-lasting pink double flowers that open two weeks after the Yoshino. They thrive in East Potomac Park alongside Fugenzo (double rosy-pink) and Shirofugen (double white aging to pink). Weeping Japanese cherry (Higan) blooms a week before Yoshino, with flowers ranging from white to dark pink. Other varieties include autumn-flowering cherry, Sargent cherry (dark pink), and Usuzumi cherry (whitish-gray).

Yoshino cherry
Kwanzan cherry
Akebono cherry
Shirofugen cherry
Weeping cherry

Festival Events and Blossom Viewing

The festival officially opens with the lighting of a 2-ton, 8-foot granite Japanese lantern—a 1954 gift commemorating the 1854 Treaty of Kanagawa. The two-week celebration begins the last Saturday of March, featuring a kite festival, sushi and sake tastings, art exhibits, cultural performances, a parade, and fireworks.

Peak bloom averages April 4 but can shift by two weeks depending on weather. The National Park Service provides real-time bloom forecasts to help visitors plan their visit.

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Resources
National Cherry Blossom Festival
National Park Service: Cherry Blossom Festival
ElizaScidmore.com

Images:
Thumbnail of cherry trees and Washington Monument from Wikimedia, public domain
Blossoms and Jefferson Memorial from Wikimedia, Al Jazeera Creative Commons
Eliza Scidmore from Wikimedia Commons, public domain
Lady Bird Johnson from Wikimedia Commons, public domain
DG Member Photos:
Yoshino and Akebono cherry by growin
Kwanzan cherry by hczone6
Shirofugen cherry by GardenGuyKing
Weeping cherry by bootandall

(Editor's Note: This article was originally published on April 3, 2012. Your comments are welcome, but please be aware that authors of previously published articles may not be able to respond to your questions.)