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Cherry Blossoms at the National Arboretum

by | Apr 4, 2009 | Flowers, Photo Locations, Rosaceae Family, Washington DC | 3 comments

Best described as – Blossoms as wonderful as the Tidal Basin – without all the people!

Earlier this week, I spent a few hours at the U.S. National Arboretum in Washington DC. I was amazed at the variety of Cherry Blossoms I found there. The National Arboretum has over 20 varieties of cherry trees that bloom from mid-March to late April. To help visitors find the trees and learn about them, the Arboretum has developed a self-guided tour – Beyond the Tidal Basin: Introducing Other Great Flowering Cherry Trees. The tour brochure is available at the Arobretum and runs through April 12.

Here are a few of the varieties of Cherry Blossoms I photographed this week.

Fudanzakura – an early flowering tree. It can bloom sporadically through the winter and early spring before blooming fully.

cherry_blossoms_fudanzakura_7694

Fudanzakura Cherry Blossoms (c) 2009 Patty Hankins

Autumnalis – a double blossoming early blooming cherry blossom.

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Autumnalis Cherry Blossoms (c) 2009 Patty Hankins

cherry_blossoms_autumnalis_7941Autumnalis Cherry Blossoms (c) 2009 Patty Hankins

Yedoensis – the blossoms on this tree were almost pure white.

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Yedoensis Cherry Blossoms (c) 2009 Patty Hankins

cherry_blossoms_yedoensis_8144Yedoensis Cherry Blossoms (c) 2009 Patty Hankins

And finally – an Okitsu Akabana Apricot blossom. I originally had this identified as a type of cherry blossom – but it is an apricot blossom.  It was so pretty, I figured no one could object to it being in a post about cherry blossoms. 🙂

apricot_okitsu_akabana_8012Okitsu Akabana Apricot Blossom (c) 2009 Patty Hankins

Perhaps the most amazing aspect of my visit to the flowering trees at the Arboretum was how few people I saw during my several hour visit.  It wasn’t uncommon for me to spend 30 minutes photographing a tree – with no one else in sight for the entire time. Can you imagine 30 minutes by yourself at any of the Cherry Trees at the Tidal Basin?

If  you’re looking for a different place to view some cherry blossoms, I’d really reccomend paying a visit to the National Arboretum.

3 Comments

  1. Frances
    Frances on April 4, 2009 at 7:32 am

    Stunning photos — just gorgeous! The light looks perfect, and the little beads of water on the blossoms? Perfection.

  2. robert
    robert on April 5, 2009 at 5:07 pm

    Patty,

    These turned out great! The subdued light from the overcast day really made the colors pop. And the moisture on the flowers is a nice touch. Hopefully when I can get over there I’ll get some good shots too.

    robert

  3. Isabel
    Isabel on May 3, 2009 at 1:42 am

    Hi there!, I really love your pics, Let me ask you if I can get your permision to use them in my site, I need photos of cherry blossoms and i am not a photographer and here were i live in mexico there are no sakura trees.
    i will wait for your permision for me to use your pictures
    Thank you so much
    Congratulations for your talent

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