So, yes, January is a very early time to see cherry trees start to blossom but what you’re actually seeing are plum trees.
Now both kinds of trees are pretty much the same thing, so no biggee, but plums come out earlier than cherries – global warming doesn’t have anything to do with that.
Oh, here’s what they look like, rather a bit more pink than cherry, in my experience.
Near Clay and Davis, Financial District:
And here’s a nice shot from Flickr:
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…Damn that’s purdy.
that’s true, but here in SF I’m pretty sure the plums start blooming usually in March/April in normal years. here’s one from 2009
http://www.bluoz.com/blog/index.php?/archives/541-Springtime-in-South-of-Market.html
I mean I remember these same plums blooming in later March…But this is definitely not a normal year anyway
oh yeah and here’s the cherries tree
http://www.bluoz.com/blog/index.php?/archives/602-Chinese-cherries-of-Langton.html
those do indeed bloom later than plums
They usually bloom this time of year. They are maybe a week early; it’s been a fairly dry season so far.
I’ve never not seen them bloom in late January but I wasn’t living here in the 1980′s or anything.