April 4, 2008

Spring in the Capital

The annual National Cherry Blossom Festival signals that spring has sprung in Washington D.C.

By Claudia Atticot

For the next week, more than one million visitors to the nation's capital will be seeing pink. In the past few days, thousands of cherry trees have sprouted a soft blush of pink and white blossoms all over the city. The blooming buds kicked off the 73rd annual National Cherry Blossom Festival in Washington, D.C., last Saturday, March 29.

SAUL LOEB—AFP/GETTY IMAGES Tourists admire cherry blossoms in full bloom at the National Cherry Blossom Festival in Washington, DC.

A Blooming Friendship

The two-week festival celebrates Japan's gift of 3,000 cherry trees to the United States in 1912. The trees symbolized the growing friendship between the two nations. On March 27, 1912, First Lady Helen Herron Taft, wife of then President Howard Taft, and Viscountess Chinda, the wife of the Japanese ambassador, planted the first two cherry trees on the north bank of the Tidal Basin in West Potomac Park in Washington, D.C.

In 1964, First Lady Lady Bird Johnson, President Lyndon B. Johnson's wife, created the Committee for a More Beautiful Capital. She believed that beautiful surroundings led to a better outlook on life. A year later, Japan presented her with 3,800 more cherry trees to be planted around the Washington Monument and in different places around the capital. That April, Johnson and Ryuji Takeuchi, wife of the Japanese ambassador, recreated the planting of the first trees in 1912.

The donated cherry trees turned out to benefit Japan as well. After floods devastated the country's Yoshino cherry trees in the early 1980s, Japanese horticulturists collected more than 800 cuttings from cherry trees near the Tidal Basin to replace those that were lost.

Growing a Festival

The first National Cherry Blossom Festival bloomed in 1935 as a three-day celebration. In 1994, it was extended to two weeks, to make time for the Cherry Blossom Princess and Cherry Blossom Queen programs, cultural performances, tours, sporting events and exhibits.

Today, the festival has come symbolize the beginning of spring. Over the years, it has brought hundreds of thousands of people from around the world to the area.

A Running Start

This year, the National Park service will host the first-ever "cherry chit-chat" runs in the early morning for three days during the festival. The three-and-a-half mile tour will start at the Washington Monument and end at the Tidal Basin. It will highlight the cultural history and significance of the cherry trees. This event will also give visitors a chance to take a closer look at the "indicator tree," which strangely blooms a full week before the other cherry trees. "We don't know why it blooms ahead of the others," says Rebbecca Steketee, the park ranger who will lead the runs. "It's a mystery."

The Grand Finale

Although the festival officially ends on April 13, the day before thousands will hit the streets for the Parade of the National Cherry Blossom Festival. It's one of the largest public events of the year. This year's gala will feature stars from movie, television and Broadway along with marching bands, antique cars and gigantic helium balloons.

Back to all headlines