Cherry Blossoms in the News: Caring for the Cherry Trees and Preparing for Peak Bloom!
Cherry Blossoms in the News: Caring for the Cherry Trees and Preparing for Peak Bloom!
As the National Park Service and the Trust for the National Mall prepared for Peak Bloom and another beautiful season of the flowering cherry trees, we welcomed the public to get a sneak-peek at what it’s like to care for and maintain the Tidal Basin’s blooms. To learn more, watch the stories below!
Here are some fast facts about how the National Park Service cares for the cherry trees in all four seasons:
NPS has been working to add a blanket of wood chips underneath the trees to protect their roots from damage and to help them retain moisture.
Flowering cherry trees have a life span of about 40-50 years, meaning the Park Service must replace many trees in a given year.
Arborists collect tree tissue and soil samples from damaged trees and take them to plant pathology labs to figure out how to ensure the future health of the trees.
WUSA9: Pruning the cherry blossoms for peak bloom at the Tidal Basin
CBS Evening News: Cherry blossoms mark the beginning of spring
Behind the blossoms | 7News takes peek into caretaking for DC's Tidal Basin cherry trees
Photo by 7News
WTOP: How the National Park Service keeps the cherry trees looking so good
WTOP : How the Tidal Basin is damaging DC’s cherry blossoms — and what’s being done about it
Photo by Angela Napili