If You Want to See Cherry Blossoms Now: Discovering Kawazu-zakura

Many Japanese guidebooks feature the iconic image of cherry blossoms—the familiar sight of pale pink petals filling the landscape from late March to early April. But it is now the end of February. If you are visiting Japan at this time of year, you might assume it is simply too early for sakura and resign yourself to missing them.

Before the Cherry Blossoms: Discovering Japan’s Plum Season

In a previous column, I introduced Japanese plum blossoms, those modest yet beautiful harbingers of early spring. While Japan’s flower-viewing culture is wonderfully diverse, cherry blossoms hold a uniquely special place in people’s hearts. Here is the good news: just as there are many varieties of plum trees that bloom over an extended season, the same is true for cherry blossoms. The sakura season is not limited to April.

Sakura Is More Than Somei-yoshino

The scene described above was captured today, February 28, along the Kyu-Nakagawa River in Tokyo’s Edogawa, where dozens of vibrant cherry trees are already in bloom. When people hear “Japanese cherry blossoms,” most immediately think of the Somei-yoshino, with its delicate, almost translucent pale pink petals. In modern Japan, sakura has come to mean Somei-yoshino for many people, and the dramatic spectacle of the trees bursting into full bloom all at once has come to define the beauty of hanami.

Each spring, news programs track the “blossom front” as it moves northward across the Japanese archipelago, and people carefully plan their schedules around its brief and spectacular peak. Yet cherry blossoms were not always confined to this single image. Japan is home to hundreds of varieties, many of which bloom earlier or later than the Somei-yoshino. In fact, the “sakura” celebrated in classical waka poetry was not the Somei-yoshino at all. This now-iconic tree is a relatively recent cultivar developed during the Edo period—an interesting detail that is often overlooked outside specialist circles.

Early Spring Along the River: Kawazu-zakura

The flowers currently blooming along the Kyu-Nakagawa are Kawazu-zakura, an early-blooming variety that has been gaining attention in recent years. First discovered in 1955 in the town of Kawazu, it is believed to be a natural hybrid. Unlike the nearly white petals of the Somei-yoshino, Kawazu-zakura blossoms are a much deeper pink. They typically bloom from early February to early March and, remarkably, can remain in flower for nearly a month.

Seeing these vivid pink blossoms lined along the river beneath a bright winter sky feels like a quiet declaration that spring has already begun, regardless of what the calendar says.

A rare sight: early-spring rapeseed flowers and cherry blossoms blooming side by side.

Large numbers have been planted in Kawazu itself, where seasonal festivals celebrate their bloom. Their vibrant color and extended flowering period have made them increasingly popular across Japan, and they are now often planted near well-known Somei-yoshino viewing spots as well.

A New Photo Spot in Tokyo

Their appeal is not limited to traditional hanami locations. Even at one of Tokyo’s newest landmarks, the Tokyo Skytree, a small number of Kawazu-zakura trees have been planted nearby. Though only a few in number, they have already become a striking photo spot, where the deep pink blossoms frame the soaring tower against the crisp late-winter sky.

The contrast between the vivid flowers and the modern skyline creates an image that feels distinctly contemporary, yet unmistakably seasonal. Such plantings suggest how early-blooming varieties can expand the visual and experiential calendar of spring in the city.

Rethinking the Image of Sakura

They also represent an appealing tourism resource, offering a longer window for visitors to experience cherry blossoms. International travelers have already begun gathering along the Kyu-Nakagawa to admire them. In this sense, Kawazu-zakura may gradually gain broader international recognition as an alternative expression of sakura, complementing rather than replacing the familiar image of Somei-yoshino.

For decades, the image of sakura has become almost inseparable from Somei-yoshino, with media coverage, tourism campaigns, and even our collective sense of the seasons revolving around its brief blooming period. Yet this intense focus may have unintentionally narrowed our perception of what cherry blossoms can be.

Perhaps it is time to rediscover the broader richness of sakura culture through the bold and somewhat untamed beauty of Kawazu-zakura. Japanese cherry blossoms are not a single fleeting moment; they are a season that unfolds gradually. From early bloomers like Kawazu-zakura, to the celebrated Somei-yoshino, and onward to late-blooming varieties, spring progresses in a graceful gradation of color and time.

If you find yourself thinking that it is “a bit too early for sakura,” take another look. Those blossoms, dressed in a slightly deeper shade of pink, may already be waiting for you.