We are revisiting some past content on the science, economics and culture of cherry blossom season. Most importantly, we talk about some of the best spots to check them out in the Tokyo and Osaka areas.

Hosted by Shaun McKenna and produced by Dave Cortez.

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Shaun McKenna 00:08

Welcome to Deep Dive from The Japan Times. I'm Shaun McKenna. When it comes to cherry blossom, or, “sakura,” season in Japan, timing is everything. On Saturday, Kochi became the first prefecture in the country to see the blossoms . They were on a Somei Yoshino cherry tree at Kochi Castle. No such luck in Tokyo, where it was cold and rainy. Today we're going to revisit some stories about Japan's love of sakura and we're going to start with my colleagues, Alissa I. Smith and Thu-Huong Ha discussing this obsession with figuring out when the blossoms are going to bloom, a feat that's getting more difficult due to climate change.

Alyssa Smith 00:32

Hey, Thu.

Thu-Huong Ha 00:54

Hey Alyssa.

Alyssa Smith 0:54

The last time we were on the pod together, we talked about cultural trends and highlights in 2022 . You also recently spoke to Jason about the evolution of Yayoi Kusama . Now, you're taking a little detour and you've written a piece about sakura forecasting . What piqued your interest in this subject?

Thu-Huong Ha 01:11

Well, first of all, great point, Alyssa. I am not a science reporter. I'm not here in the capacity of being a climate change expert. But I have always been interested since I moved to Japan in the sakura forecast, because I think it is kind of a unique part of culture here. And I was really curious, like, you know, I would see these lists of like, this park is 40% full but the park next to it is 60% full, and I was like “Who is recording this?” Is it just like a guy? But you know, how I pictured was a guy with white gloves, and a magnifying glass every day going out and checking the difference in the diameter of these flowers.

Alyssa Smith 01:48

I imagined it's a pretty big responsibility to sort of kick off the party season for all of Japan?

Thu-Huong Ha 01:55

Yes, I actually got to witness a sakura press conference!

Alyssa Smith 01:59

Was it what you imagined it would be?

Thu-Huong Ha 02:02

Um, yeah, in that I was looking at a wall of shoulders.

Alyssa Smith 02:05

You start your piece standing in front of a very special tree in Tokyo. And I didn't know about the existence of this tree. So can you give us a little bit more information about why this tree is so special?

Thu-Huong Ha 02:17

Yes, there is a tree — actually very close to where we're sitting right now in Tokyo at Yasukuni Shrine. It is a sakura tree that has been designated by the government as the sample tree that is used for the prefecture of Tokyo. So the Japan Meteorological Agency sets the standard for observing sakura trees, obviously. And there's a list of 58 of these trees in the country, all across the country. And there are rules about the flowering of these trees. So on the day that I went, there was somebody from the agency, a meteorologist...

Alyssa Smith 02:50

Was he wearing white gloves?

Thu-Huong Ha 02:52

Heh... I don't think so. But he was very nervous, because he's not a, you know, he's not a public speaker. He probably just looks at charts all day. But it was his job that day. It's what he's looking for, in order to declare the first day like the opening of the trees is for five to six flowers to be open on the tree and they have to be on the branches — not on the trunk and not on the roots.

Alyssa Smith 03:13

I see. Can you explain a little bit of the science behind the sakura blossoming? For example, what are the main factors in when they bloom and how they bloom?

Thu-Huong Ha 03:21

Sure.