Some of Washington’s iconic cherry trees are about to disappear
About 140 cherry trees that are part of Washington’s iconic spring attraction will be cut down this year to make way for construction of new, taller seawalls to protect the area around the Jefferson Memorial.
The National Park Service, which is overseeing the project, said Wednesday that it has tried to minimize the loss of the trees, which erupt each year in a blaze of pink and white splendor that draws more than 1.5 million visitors to limit. But the age of the existing barriers, rising sea levels and poor drainage forced him to do so.
The current sea walls have sunk by as much as one and a half meters since they were built at the end of the 19th century and are no longer an effective bulwark against tidal waves and storm surges. Tides flood parts of the walls twice a day, the Park Service said.
“Despite several repairs over the decades, the seawalls are no longer structurally sound and pose a threat to the safety of visitors and the historic environment, including the cherry trees surrounding the tidal basin,” the Park Service said in a statement.
Blossom lovers have one more chance to experience the flowers in their full glory. Construction will not begin until the end of May, after the National Cherry Blossom Festival, which runs from late March to mid-April.
The trees to be removed represent just a small portion of the 3,800 cherry trees surrounding the Tidal Basin, a serene pool wedged between the National Mall and the Potomac River, and in the adjacent West Potomac Park. But one of the most famous trees will be among the victims: Stumpy, a small, twisted cherry tree that went viral on social media in 2020. The tree, which stands just a few meters from the crumbling sea wall, has survived despite constant flooding from high tides and rain showers.
Some Stumpy fans were already making pilgrimages on Wednesday after news spread of its impending demise. Wallace Boyd, an artist from the suburb of Silver Spring, Maryland, who goes by Mahet, recorded a video of Stumpy reciting a poem dedicated to the tree.
The Park Service will use clippings from Stumpy to create a baby tree in the same spot where the famous cherry tree now stands, said Mike Litterst, a Park Service spokesman. The other trees removed for construction won’t be so lucky: they will be turned into mulch that can protect the roots of new trees.
The National Park Service decided not to move Stumpy because the tree is unlikely to survive a measure that “inadvertently damages its roots,” Mr. Litterst said. Other, healthier cherry trees will not be moved because moving them is very expensive, he added. All told, however, the Park Service plans to plant more than 270 new cherry trees once the new seawalls are completed in 2027.
The cherry trees near the National Mall were planted for the first time in the capital a gift from the mayor of Tokyo in 1912. Most of the original trees are extinct, as most cherry trees live less than 50 years. Mr Litterst said it is unclear, but highly unlikely, that any original trees remain among those to be removed.
The construction, which will cost $113 million over three years, will create a new structure that can last 100 years against rising sea levels caused by accelerated climate change, the Park Service said. The path around the Tidal Basin will remain largely open during the work.
Funding for the project comes from the Great American Outdoors Act, a bipartisan law passed by Congress in 2020 that provided $9.5 billion to repair infrastructure in America’s nearly 430 national parks.
Knows Nishimura reporting contributed.