Bien Stephenson's Flickr photostream/Creative Commons

Tomorrow the National Cherry Blossom Festival kicks off in our nation’s capital, Washington DC.  In case there was any doubt, Spring is in full effect, as evidenced by the beautiful pink petals of the cherry trees blooming on cherry tries surrounding the Tidal Basin next to the Jefferson Memorial.

The trees were a gift from the Mayor of Tokyo, Yukio Ozaki, to the City of Washington DC presented on March 27, 1912.  Over half a Century later, in 1967, First Lady Lady Bird Johnson accepted an additional 3800 trees from Japan.  In 1981, the United States got the chance to return the favor by donating cuttings from the famous cherry trees to Japanese horticulturalists to replace a number of cherry trees which had been destroyed by a flood in Japan.  Most recently, in 1999, Japan donated cuttings of a cherry tree thought to be over 1500 years old to plant around the Tidal Basin.Each year over 700,000 people visit the famous Cherry Blossoms in Washington DC.  You can takepart in this beautiful springtime tradition by checking out the National Cherry Blossom Festival online.

LINKS:

WTOP: Cherry blossoms are days away from full bloom

WaPo: High hopes for Cherry Blossom festival attendance

The Free Lance Star: Beauty in Bloom, Cherry Blossom Style in DC