Ohio [PDF], and elsewhere.
Some are larger than others, but these aren’t small-potatoes affairs: Macon, Ga., for example, spotlights more than 300,000 Yoshino cherry trees.
There also are festivals in Canada, England, China, Australia — and, of course, in Japan, where cherry-blossom viewing, called doing hanami, is practically a national sport. In addition to admiring the blossoms, hanami involves includes strolling and picnicking under the trees. There are dozens of festivals throughout the country, many with their trees illuminated at night.
In light of the awful events that have taken place recently in Japan, this isn’t the year to travel there. But Japan will recover, and its cherry trees will survive, more beautiful than ever.
Cherry trees for cold climates
Even the most hardy of those spectacular ornamental cherries are iffy in my windy, cold location, but if I want to window shop online I can look at the wonderful cherries growing at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden. (The BBG holds its own hanami celebration each year.)
For gardeners with suitable conditions — USDA Zones 5 to 8 — an ornamental cherry is boon to any landscape. And you can plant a Yoshino tree while supporting the National Cherry Blossom Festival at the same time if you can purchase it from the Arbor Day Foundation, which gives a portion of the proceeds to the festival.
