Somei Yoshino still holding on in Saitama

Somei Yoshino are a variety of cherry blossom. In fact, they are the main variety. The one that causes a frenzy in Japan every spring. Their flowering condition is reported daily on the news even. They typically bloom the last week of March and the first week of April in the Kanto plain (the area around Tokyo). But this year (2025), just like last year, they were late to start blooming.

Full bloom is only a few days during the two weeks that the Somei Yoshino bloom. Other varieties of cherry blossoms can bloom longer and hold their full bloom longer too. But Somei Yoshino are fleeting. Because the period of bloom was late this year, the trees were also late to reach full bloom. By and large, the full bloom period is over and now the trees are starting to shed their petals. They still look very beautiful as they thin out.

Even though full bloom has peaked in the flat lands of Saitama Prefecture, for the most part, in the mountains they are only reaching full bloom now. Moreover, if you are really lucky, you can still find some places even in the low lands where the trees are still in full bloom. I found the cherry blossoms, pictured below, today, April 11th 2025, and they are still really full and fluffy.

Don't worry if you missed the Somei Yoshino in Kanto. There are even more varieties of cherry blossoms coming in the next weeks! In fact, each year you can enjoy cherry blossom viewing for ten weeks in most prefectures, between all the different varieties. In addition, if you are in the position to do so, if you head North where the Somei Yoshino have only just started to bloom!