25 Best Cherry Blossoms Facts That You Definitely Never Knew Before

You may have heard the story of America's first president damaging his father's cherry tree with a hatchet as a young boy. When confronted about it, he allegedly confessed and said, "I cannot tell a lie." While it's an admirable anecdote about honesty, this is actually a myth made up by one of George Washington's biographers, Mason Locke Weems.

Typically, they only last about 16-20 years. But certain species have a much longer life expectancy. Black cherry trees, for example, can live up to 250 years.

Yep, think again before you decide to pluck one of these pink beauties. Removing a blossom or branch is considered vandalism of federal property in Washington, D.C., which can lead to a citation or even an arrest.

This branch of trees is largely for looks as opposed to fruit production. Ornamental cherry trees do produce fruit closely related to edible cherries, these trees are usually grown for their beauty.

All of the 400 cherry trees in Amsterdam's Amsterdamse Bos are named. In 2000, the Japan Women's Club donated the trees to the city to celebrate the two nations' relationship.

The cherry blossoms and the leaves are edible and used in many traditional Japanese sweets and tea. They are first pickled and then used in recipes for mochi cakes, candies, and even cookies. You can also brew sakura blossom tea or make cocktails with preserved blossoms.

Known as "sakura" in Japanese, these pale blooms are a symbol of spring because it is a time of renewal. However, because the blooms are short-lived, they are also symbolic of the fleeting nature of life.

Baskin Robbins Japan rereleased a limited edition cherry blossom ice cream flavor in 2016. Häagen-Dazs also released a short-run cherry blossom pint for Valentine's Day in the UK in 2018.

The century-old custom is known as "hanami," which means flower viewing. Early records hint that the tradition began with emperors and members of the Imperial Palace feasting under the trees' blooming branches.

Peak bloom varies each year in Washington D.C., but typically occurs around April 4 and can last up to 14 days. The peak bloom is the day when 70 percent of the Toshino cherry trees are open.

The ornamental Japanese cherry trees we are used to seeing average 20 to 40 feet with canopies that can reach between 15 and 30 feet. Wild cherry trees can grow up to 80 feet tall.

For these late-night picnics, known as "yozakura," the Japanese hang paper lanterns in cherry blossom trees to illuminate them.

According to the National Cherry Blossom Festival in D.C., the flower is celebrated as a symbol for the enduring friendship between Japan and the US. Over one million people attend D.C.'s annual festival that now lasts for four weeks.

The first US cherry trees were planted in 1912 as a gift of friendship from Japan. Over 3,000 trees spanning 12 varieties were shipped from Yokohama to Seattle. They were then transferred to freight cars and sent to Washington, D.C.

In 1910, US inspectors from the Department of Agriculture recommended burning the 2,000 trees sent from the Japanese after finding insects and diseases in the trees. According to Washingtonian, this nearly caused a diplomatic crisis.

Want to catch cherry blossoms in all their glory? You'll want to wait until March, when bloom predictions are made by the National Park Service, to plan your trip.

The top fragrance from Bath and Body Works is consistently their Japanese Cherry Blossom. Thirty million units of the mixture of cherry blossoms, crisp pears, mimosa petals, and sweet sandalwood are sold each year.

This image, cherry blossoms framing Mount Fuji, is a common postcard view found throughout the Fuji Five Lakes.

While the majority of the cherry trees are near the Tidal Basin, many clusters are found along the National Mall, north of the Lincoln Memorial, and near the Washington Monument in addition to other areas in the city.

Rather, it's Macon, Georgia, which is home to over 350,000 Yoshino cherry blossom trees. That's 90 times the amount that Washington, D.C. has! While these trees obviously are not native to the South, William A. Fickling Sr., a local realtor, discovered one in his own backyard in 1949. On a business trip to Washington, D.C., he learned more about cherry blossoms and sought to bring more to his hometown.