It’s High Park cherry blossoms season. Here’s when the first full bloom is expected

Cherry blossoms blooming in Toronto’s High Park is a sure sign spring has arrived and winter weather is in the rearview mirror. With sunny skies forecasted to begin the week, we’re that much closer to witnessing a full bloom, but how might a rainy few days impact the process?

Blossoms in High Park usually reach peak bloom between late April and early May. According to High Park’s nature centre, the cherry blossoms are now in Stage 4 of the bloom development process. While cold weather can slow things down, warmer spring weather can move the buds along quickly.

Stage 4 typically reveals flower stems that get longer, with some blossoms seen during this period. High Park’s nature centre says the cherry blossoms are vulnerable to frost at this stage, which could cause issues should temperatures continue to drop in the coming days.

“Taking into account all these weather forecasts, we expect peak bloom to begin on Monday, April 22,” said Rohith Rao, a spokesperson for High Park’s nature centre.

“The blooming period, which is when 20 per cent of the cherry blossoms are open, will begin sometime this weekend and will end when the petals fall. Peak bloom, which is the ideal cherry blossom viewing period, starts when at least 70 per cent of the blossoms are open.”

Sakura Steve believes the first bloom in High Park could come as soon as this week.

“All we need now is just a good few sunny days, and then we should see a full bloom right around [this] weekend,” Sakura Steve wrote in his latest update. “That ties in with my prediction of April 18 to see the full bloom start and then continue through to the 24th, weather permitting.”

There is no vehicle or parking access to High Park during the cherry blossom peak bloom period. Only Wheel-Trans vehicles will be allowed into High Park during peak bloom.

How this week’s forecast could impact peak bloom

Since the blooming of cherry blossoms is so weather-dependent, Toronto’s extended forecast and temperature fluctuation could make things tricky.

The week kicked off with beautiful sunny skies, which will continue on Tuesday with a daytime high of 15 C on Monday and 13 C by this afternoon. That should speed up the process slightly; however, a system is expected to bring a heavy dose of rain on Wednesday that will linger until Friday. Upwards of 50 millimetres could accumulate in the city by week’s end.

Rao said the cherry blossoms should reach Stage 5 in the coming days when fluffy white flowers emerge. During this stage, the flowers would still have protection from their petals.

“Heavy rain would only be a concern if the blossoms have been open for a number of days as the petals would be more sensitive,” he said. “At the same time, rain also plays a factor in helping the flowers grow.”

Rao said it’s often difficult to predict accurately how long the cherry blossoms will be at peak bloom due to the everchanging and unpredictable weather conditions in late April and early May.

Of course, Stage 6 is the peak blooming period, when fluffy white Sakura blossoms begin to open. Once open, flowers last 4-10 days, depending on the weather conditions. Cherry blossoms last for about a week to a half with appropriate spring-like weather, but if it rains while they are in bloom, the flower petals fall quicker, and the blooming may be over in a few days.

The City of Toronto lists other locations where cherry blossoms can be seen, in addition to High Park.