Toronto’s annual cherry blossom watch is heating up, with the latest updates suggesting that High Park’s most photographed spring ritual could reach peak bloom by the middle of next week! Just days ago, Steve Joniak (aka Sakura Steve) reported that trees across the park had moved into Stage 3 and, in some cases, Stage 4, helped along by recent bouts of warm weather.
If you headed over today, you’d likely spot deep pink florets extending from the buds. As they continue to emerge, the buds begin to take on the shape of each floret with individual stems and leaves protecting the light pink and white blossoms inside! Even with the fluctuating weather in recent days, Joniak said the buds are still fairly protected at this point.
“Rain has also been very abundant as of late, but as shown by my latest visit, it too has had little impact on the trees. But hopefully it will let up for drier conditions in the weeks ahead, as having some nice sunny days would go a long way toward helping the blossoms along,” Joniak wrote in his blog.
This all lines up nicely with the High Park Nature Centre’s bloom timeline. Stage 3 typically arrives about 12 days before peak bloom, while Stage 4 usually lands about six to 10 days before peak bloom, so High Park could start looking especially good by the middle of next week, with a peak-bloom window likely falling around April 29 to May 2.
“Peak bloom” lands at Stage 6, according to the Centre, and begins when at least 70 per cent of blossoms are open. Once the flowers are out, they usually last four to 10 days.
But weather will continue to be the biggest variable. Toronto’s current forecast shows a run of mostly cool-to-mild days through the end of April, with daytime highs generally in the 10 C to 15 C range. If that pattern continues, the buds should keep progressing nicely.
If you’re yearning for a glimpse of the pink-and-white blooms, check out some of the best places to see cherry blossoms in and around Toronto this year.
