Cold Weather Limiting Washington’s Cherry Blossoms
This is What's Trending Today.
There are about 1,700 cherry trees planted in the southwestern part of Washington, D.C. They live along the Potomac River and around a connecting body of water called the Tidal Basin.
The city's first cherry trees were a gift from Japan to the United States in 1912.
Each year, about 1 million people travel to Washington to see cherry blossoms growing on the trees. The best time to see the blossoms usually is in late March through early April. There are parades and other events to celebrate the flowering trees and the return of spring.
About two weeks ago, we reported that an unusually warm winter had forecasters worried that the blossoms might come out early.
After all, on March 1, the air temperature in Washington reached 27 degrees Celsius.
Some of the trees were already producing pink and white blossoms.
But then the weather began acting more like winter. It got colder and snowy.
In fact, last Wednesday, the temperature was - 5 degrees Celsius. There was snow on the ground. Many of the blossoms and buds froze when the snow turned to ice.
The U.S. National Park Service says about half of the blossoms were destroyed.
But there are so many trees, and so many buds, that experts think visitors to Washington will still enjoy the cherry trees.
Michael Stachowicz studies the trees for the park service. He told the Washington Post newspaper that many of the buds were not harmed by the cold weather.
"Our blooms are just so dense and lush and just overwhelming," he said. "There might be some trees that don't blossom at all, but I think that will be in the minority."
While the cherry trees may not look their best this year because of the late winter weather, trees in some other cities are expected to look great.
For example, people in Korea and Japan are already celebrating cherry blossom season and posting beautiful photographs on Twitter.
And in Japan, McDonald's restaurants are getting into the spirit. There are cherry blossom-themed drinks and sandwich wrappers. Twitter users in other countries say they wish they were in Japan to enjoy them.
And that's What's Trending Today.
I'm Dan Friedell.
1.travel to 前往
How quickly can I travel to Alaska?
2.come out 出现
The truth is beginning to come out about what happened.
3.warm winter 暖冬
Some hibernating animals may wake up on warm winter days.
4.cherry trees 樱花树
There is no blossom on the cherry trees this year.
1.The U.S. National Park Service says about half of the blossoms were destroyed.
about half of 约一半
About half of those funds has gone to repair public roads, structures and bridges
India and China account for about half of global consumer demand for gold.
2.After all, on March 1, the air temperature in Washington reached 27 degrees Celsius.
After all 毕竟
He failed after all.
Things weren't so bad, after all. I was among friends again.
华盛顿西南部地区生长着约1700株樱花树 。这些樱花树集中在波托马克河沿岸以及潮汐湖周围 。
每年，华盛顿的樱花都会吸引百万游客前来观赏 。最佳观赏季节通常为3月末至4月初 。人们还会举办游行和其他活动庆祝樱花节，迎接春天 。
但是，气温骤降，凛如寒冬 。天气转冷，雪花飘飘 。
其实，上周三的气温曾一度降至5摄氏度 。路面也出现积雪 。很多花朵和花苞因积雪融化后结冰 。
迈克尔（Michael Stachowicz）负责国家公园的树木研究工作 。他对《华盛顿邮报》表示，很多花苞并未受寒潮天气影响 。
他说，“这里的樱花分布密集，长势喜人，美不胜收” 。“有的樱花树甚至不开花，但那只是少数 。”
日本一家麦当劳餐厅抓住了这一节日的精髓 。他们推出樱花主题的饮品和三明治包装 。其他国家的推特网友不禁眼红：要是在日本就好了 。