Cherry blossoms in Washington, DC have reached the fifth stage of flowering

The wait for peak DC cherry blossom blooms is coming to an end. The National Park Service has announced that cherry trees in the Tidal Basin now have puffy white buds.

The puffy white buds are the fifth stage of the flowering process. Peak bloom, which is when 70% or more of the cherry trees have open blossoms, is the sixth step in the process.

The peak bloom date is projected by the National Park Service between Wednesday and March 25, 2023.

“Flowers are starting to appear, now we’re just waiting for them to open. This is stage 5 – puffy white. Next stop is peak bloom,” the National Park Service tweeted, along with a photo of one of the trees.

The flowers are starting to appear, now we are waiting for them to open. This is stage 5 – puffy white. Next stop is Peak Bloom!
🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸/🌸
Follow #BloomWatch online at https://t.co/h04Gu0ksc1#Cherry flower #WashingtonDC pic.twitter.com/BzDGG20UzC

— National Mall NPS (@NationalMallNPS) March 18, 2023

The National Cherry Blossom Festival notes that peak bloom may occur as early as Monday or Tuesday. The week-long festival started on Saturday, but the official opening ceremony is scheduled for March 25.

The famous trees, 3,000 of them, were first brought to Washington DC in 1912 by then-Mayor of Tokyo Yukio Ozaki, and the festival commemorates in part the enduring diplomatic and cultural ties between the America and Japan.