Every year, between the end of March and the beginning of April, the cherry trees of Japan adorn themselves with thousands of flowers and offer a spectacle of the most bucolic to visitors to Japanese gardens and parks. An event known as hanami (literally, looking at flowers) that can also be experienced in France.
t is the most anticipated spring event in Japan . Every year, between the end of March and the beginning of April, the cherry trees adorn themselves with thousands of flowers, transforming the gardens and parks into bucolic landscapes. If the sakura have not yet shown the tips of their petals in the land of the rising sun, it should not be long.
Last year, the Japan Meteorological Agency kicked off the cherry blossom season in mid-March after several blossoms appeared at a shrine in the capital. Every year at the same time, this agency watches for the flowering of some fifty reference trees across the archipelago.
Their location is kept secret, but the list is known to include the Somei-Yoshino cherry trees at Yasukuni-jinja shrine in the heart of Tokyo . As soon as five flowers have appeared, the season can officially start. The trees in the capital usually bloom within seven days and the curious are eager to take advantage of the event.
This custom is known as hanami (literally, looking at flowers). Hundreds of thousands of Japanese and tourists alike went to shrines, parks and gardens in Japan to admire the cherry trees and their delicate blooms. But it's not just in Japan that you can take advantage of the phenomenon.
In France also, several places give to see cherry trees and constitute excellent "spots" to admire the flowers. Here are ten of them.
1 - The Trocadero gardens in Paris
No need to go to the other side of the world to observe the trees in bloom. You can even stay in the capital, which has several places with cherry trees. This is the case of the Trocadéro gardens, located in the 16th arrondissement, next to the Seine and a stone's throw from the Eiffel Tower . The paths are lined with several specimens that produce small pink flowers by the hundreds.
2 - The Jardin des Plantes in Paris
Another place in the heart of the capital: the Jardin des Plantes, located next to the National Museum of Natural History (MNHN), in the 5th arrondissement of Paris . This place has only a few cherry trees, but one of them is classified as a "remarkable tree" and produces an exceptional white bloom. A spectacle that mixes with the many other trees and plants in the garden for a most bucolic walk.
Still in Paris, we could also mention the Jardin des Tuileries (1st arrondissement), the André-Citroën park (15th arr.), the Martin-Luther-King park (17th arr.) or the Père-Lachaise cemetery (20th arrondissement). arr.).
3 - The park of Sceaux (Hauts-de-Seine)
The Parc de Sceaux , located about ten kilometers south of Paris in the Hauts-de-Seine and accessible by public transport, is home to several rows of cherry trees which give a superb spectacle to see each spring. benefit the Ile-de-France residents. This year, the celebrations will take place from April 1 to 24 according to the Departmental Domain of Sceaux .
4 - The Versailles-Chèvreloup arboretum (Yvelines)
The place is unknown. Yet it is remarkable. Located in the Yvelines, the Versailles-Chèvreloup arboretum is a real tree museum which contains some 2,500 species spread over 200 hectares. The collection is divided into several zones including an Asian zone which includes a set of Japanese cherry trees whose silhouettes vary and whose flowering ranges from white to bright pink. A nice excuse to discover the entire arboretum .
5 - The Eastern Park of Maulévrier (Maine-et-Loire)
With its 29 hectares, the Oriental Park of Maulévrier , located near Cholet in Maine-et-Loire, is the largest Japanese garden in Europe. It contains some 300 trees and shrubs including cherry blossoms. The place reopens its doors on March 12, especially to celebrate the hanami , the first event of the 2022 calendar which will last three weeks, until April 3. During this period, visitors are exceptionally allowed to picnic in the park to enjoy the ephemeral spectacle.
6 - The Pierre-Baudis Japanese garden in Toulouse
Located north of the center of Toulouse , the Japanese garden Pierre-Baudis extends over 7,000 square meters in the heart of the Compans-Caffarelli park. Mixing mineral, vegetal and aquatic world, it includes a lake, small islands, rocks, a tea pavilion as well as many trees and shrubs including cherry trees which bloom at the arrival of spring. Reopened since early March, the place is perfect for celebrating hanami and enjoying Japanese immersion.
7 - The island of Versailles in Nantes
The island of Versailles is an artificial island of 1.7 hectares built on the Erdre in Nantes . It houses a Japanese garden as well as three buildings including a tea pavilion inspired by traditional Japanese housing. The place is accessible for free and allows you to walk around while contemplating the vegetation and the few cherry trees that are there.
8 - Suzon Park in Dijon
Another city, another Japanese-inspired garden: Suzon Park is located north of Dijon and is the result of a collaboration between the city and the Japanese locality of Koshigaya. Waterfall, stones, footbridge, pagoda, one finds there all the elements of the Japanese garden. Including a few cherry trees, of course, which bloom once the season has come.
9 - The Tete d'or park in Lyon
In Lyon too, it is possible to contemplate the blossoming of a cherry tree. In particular by going to the Tête d'Or park which houses an imposing specimen with pink flowers located just next to a well near the rose garden. The tree is certainly alone but the setting is rather pleasant to get a glimpse of what hanami is .
10 - The Japanese Garden of Monaco
Created in 1994 at the request of Prince Rainier III, the Japanese garden of Monaco is a green setting which again has all the characteristic elements for a Japanese immersion. The wooden structures rub shoulders with abundant vegetation and water points where koi carp peacefully evolve. The cherry trees are also there and make the place even more pleasant when they are in bloom.
In France and elsewhere
France is not the only country to have succumbed to the charms of sakura. This is also the case in particular for the United States and the city of Washington DC . Each year, it organizes the National Cherry Blossom Festival on the banks of its Tidal Basin where many specimens are planted, the fruit of a gift offered by the mayor of Tokyo in 1912. This year, the festival will be held from March 20 to 17 April with a peak of flowering expected between March 22 and 25. And for those who cannot travel, the city offers to follow the phenomenon live on the internet thanks to its "Bloom cam" .