"Let 1,000 flowers bloom," said Chairman Mao back in the sixties, letting China's intellectuals know he was willing to listen to their critiques on how he was running the country. Those who took him up on it were sent to rural areas for "reeducation". That Mao. You always had to take what he said with a grain of salt.

Anyway, these blooms also remind the Rube of the commercials for Jiffy Pop popcorn, as much fun to make as it is to eat!

The Rube's friend estimated there were only six blossoms on all of the BBG's cherries that were not blooming by the end of last week, and the Rube confirmed this the next day.

The Main image (and Fig. 1), according to the BBG's cherry tree guide, is one of "a magnificent pair of Prunus 'Shiro-fugen' near the Eastern Parkway entrance. Although the buds of this variety are pale pink, the flowers open to a pure white—hence the name shiro-fugen or 'white god.' The double white blossoms, appearing in lavish profusion, are accented by the bronzy foliage. This large-sized variety has a wide-spreading habit."

Fig. 2 and 3 show Kwanzan cherries from the Esplanade and Cherry Walk The Rube thought those in the Esplanade did not look all that old, and the BBG guide confirms they usually only last 25-30 years, though there are two in the Cherry Walk that are from the original planting in 1921, perhaps the first pair in Fig. 3.