It wasn't a great year for Kawazuzakura

I did see some really beautiful Kawazuzakura this year, but overall, it wasn't a good year for the early blooming cherry blossoms in Saitama Prefecture. The wintersweet were really fabulous this year, and lasted really long. So I had hoped the same would be true for the 'Kawazu' variety of cherry blossoms. Kawazu are one of the first cherry blossoms to bloom annually.

However, as I wrote on March 13th this year, they were late to bloom. Which doesn't always mean that they will fail to blossom properly. But this year they were later than I ever remember them which may have effected the quality of them. I visited at least five different locations were the trees only blossomed partially and the green leaves sprouted simultaneously. The above photo was taken on March 18th 2025 when they should have been either full bloom or green. The trees were mostly sprouting leaves, so they are turning green without having ever really blossomed.

How was the Kawazuzakura in your area this year?