From NOTICE News Daily for March 30, 2023
The famous cherry blossom trees in D.C. are in full bloom – we explain how these trees in our nation’s capital came to represent friendship with another country.
TRANSCRIPT
Jonathan: It’s a special time of year right now in our nation’s capital. Our Washington correspondent Angie tells us why.
Angie: Now that it’s officially spring and temperatures have started to rise, tourists are all over the place here in Washington, DC.
This time of year is especially popular with tourists because the thousands of cherry blossom trees that line the National Mall are in full bloom.
There’s even a festival in DC to celebrate the blooming of these trees.
What you might not know is these trees don’t naturally grow in this region – they had to cross an ocean to get here.
In 1885, world traveler Eliza Scidmore returned from a trip to Japan and proposed to the government that Sakura, or Japanese cherry blossom trees, be planted in Washington DC.
She continued to make the request year after year, but it wasn’t until 1909 when then First Lady Helen Taft, who had also spent time in Japan, decided to make it happen.
Over the years, the Japanese have sent 5,000 trees to our nation’s capital.
They’re seen as a symbol of friendship between Japan and the U.S.
