Earliest Cherry Blossoms in Japan

When I’m talking to friends and fellow photographers in Japan, they frequently ask me about the earliest blooming sakura in Japan. The second question is always, “Have you seen them” or “Have you photographed them?” Before they go any further, I tell them there are actually two answers to the question. If I’m being asked about the earliest blooming sakura in Japan, it’s Okinawa. There’s a nearly 500 meter (1640 ft) tall mountain that is famous throughout Japan for having the earliest blossoms of the entire country. The type of cherry blossoms one would see there are the Kanhizakura (Prunus campanulata) variety, which are shaped like bells and distinctly pink. I continue to tell them that the most famous early blooming variety are in Shizuoka, the Kawazu-zakura (Prunus lannesiana), a cold resistant type of cherry blossoms that start blooming in early February, sometimes when there is still snow in the prefecture. The crimson, five-petaled Kawazu-zakura are a sight to behold, and one of my favorite places to visit for photography early in the cherry blossom season. One of the many benefits of living in Japan for so long is having access to the off the beaten path locations and the knowledge I have collected over the more than two decades of being in the field spotting and photographing Japan’s ephemeral blossom.