WASHINGTON — The flowering trees that symbolize friendship between the United States and Japan are blooming for the 99th time in Washington in the wake of one of the world’s worst natural disasters.
Before the two-week National Cherry Blossom Festival opens Saturday, organizers held a fundraising walk and vigil Thursday evening among the trees for victims of Japan’s March 11 earthquake and tsunami.
Several hundred people gathered at the Washington Monument, some holding Japanese flags or signs of support. Japanese Ambassador Ichiro Fujisaki told the crowd his country needs help.
“Everything started on what I call 3/11 — earthquake, tsunami and nuclear incident — and we are still struggling,” he said. “Really, we need your assistance, and you’re giving that to us.”
The cherry blossom tradition began with a gift of trees from Japan in 1912. Then-first lady Helen Taft and the wife of Japan’s ambassador planted the first two trees. About 100 of the original 3,000 trees are still growing, while thousands of others have been replaced or grown from the original trees’ genetic line.
During World War II, the festival was suspended. Some trees were vandalized in those years, according to National Park Service records. After the war, the festival grew as Japan rebuilt, and a Washington group was formed to stage the festival each year.
Many of Washington’s 3,000 Yoshino cherry trees that circle the Tidal Basin near the Jefferson Memorial were beginning to bloom Thursday morning. The National Park Service has predicted they will be in peak bloom Tuesday through Friday.
