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Park Service revises prediction for peak of cherry blossoms

March 8, 2016
FILE - In this April 11, 2015, the Washington Monument is seen through cherry blossoms across the Tidal Basin Saturday in Washington. The National Park Service is predicting the peak bloom for Washington's cherry blossom trees between March 31 and April 3. 2016. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster, File)

FILE – In this April 11, 2015, the Washington Monument is seen through cherry blossoms across the Tidal Basin Saturday in Washington. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster, File)

WASHINGTON (AP) — Unseasonably warm weather has prompted the National Park Service to revise its prediction for peak blooms for Washington’s cherry blossom trees.

The agency said in a news release Tuesday that it has revised the projected dates to March 18-23. Peak bloom is when 70 percent of the trees around the Tidal Basin are in blossom.

Last week, the National Park Service announced the projected dates were between March 31 and April 3.

The agency says next week’s potentially record-setting temperatures, averaging nearly 20 degrees above normal, have accelerated the bloom watch.