The countdown to cherry blossom season has begun. More than 36 million people visit the nation’s capital each year to see the flowering trees, but those who planned to come for peak bloom may actually be too late. An unexpected string of warmer days has confused the cherry trees and caused them to bloom earlier than predicted.

“Warmer temperatures accelerate the formation of blossoms in flowering cherry trees,” said Mike Litterst, the chief of communications and spokesman of the National Mall and Memorial Parks. “When we get these 70 to 80 degree days, that really moves things along.”

Litterst told the Washington Examiner trees on the Tidal Basin that were completely bare on March 13 are now budding with just one day of 70-degree weather.

“We had originally projected peak bloom to be somewhere between March 23 and 26,” Litterst said. “But this run of warm temperatures we’ve had five days in the 70s, and maybe even 80, has really moved that up. We’re probably looking for peak bloom now early in the week of March 18.”

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A peak bloom date of March 18 is bordering on the record for earliest bloom. The Trust for the National Mall says the earliest peak bloom date on record is March 15, 1990. The latest peak bloom happened back in 1958. Trees did not flower until April 18. In 2023, peak bloom occurred on March 23.

The National Park Service has partnered with Earth Cam so people can watch the cherry trees progress on the Bloomcam. Those who have already planned a trip to the previously predicted peak bloom date of March 23 are still in luck. The National Cherry Blossom Festival still has many free events running through April, and there are tons of ways to get your cherry blossom fix in the Washington, D.C., area.