Witness the springtime bloom at the La Cañada Flintridge garden. You’ll find the beautiful pink-flowering trees, in the Japanese garden and promenade (where you can also spot the first tulips of the season). As of March 26, the Akebono and Beni Hoshi blossoms (the delicate ones by the Japanese garden’s creek) are in bloom. The Akebono are currently in full bloom (though there are less flowers than in previous years due to the heat) and should be flowering for another week; the Beni Hoshi are now past peak bloom. Make sure to check the garden’s bloom status (or Descanso’s Instagram) before making your plans.
Well before the jacaranda trees bloom and just as the California poppies begin to flower, Los Angeles also greets the springtime with cherry blossom season.
If you’re after blossoming buds, you’ll want to head to a botanical garden or Japanese garden between March and April, though some cherry blossoms began blooming as early as January and February this year. As of late March, you can still spot Pink Cloud cherry blossoms at South Coast Botanic Garden and Akebono blossoms at Descanso Gardens, both of which are in full bloom.
You’ll also find some cherry blossom festivals, where a handful of Southern California cities salute their Japanese roots. Oddly enough, while some of these fests take place in parks and along city streets adorned with those delicate pink flowers, others don’t actually feature any cherry trees.
Peak blooms are pretty short-lived, so we suggest checking each spot (Instagram tends to be particularly useful) for up-to-the-minute photos before you trek on over. It’s worth noting that the area fills with pink trees of all different kinds this time of year, so even if the cherry blossoms are past their peak, you’ll likely never be disappointed by a visit to one of these botanical gardens.
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