Sakura blossomed ahead of schedule in Japan this year

In Japan, the cherry blossom period continues. This season is called hanami — the period of admiring the cherry blossoms, it attracts thousands of tourists from all over the world.

It is noteworthy that this year the cherry blossom in Japan began in Tokyo, and earlier than usual — it started on March 14. This is a record for 70 years of observations.

So, on March 14, the Meteorological Department of Japan reported that 11 buds bloomed on a "control" tree of the variety Somei Yoshino in the Yasukuni Shrine in central Tokyo. The tree bloomed six days earlier than in 2022 and 10 days earlier than the annual average.

It is also unusual that the first flowers appeared in Tokyo: As a rule, the season begins further south, in the prefectures of Kochi and Hiroshima.

Scientists believe that the reason for the early flowering was the warm weather in March.

According to meteorologists, flowering in Kyoto and Osaka began on March 27 and 28, respectively, it will peak on April 5. The sakura season in Japan's northernmost prefecture of Hokkaido will fall at the beginning of May. And in Sapporo, the trees will bloom on May 2, flowering will reach its peak on May 5.