Cherry Blossom Lingo: cherry blossoms with leaves

Another beautiful cherry blossom term for you today: "Hazakura". Hazakura, literally means cherry blossom leaves, or in natural English, cherry blossom with leaves. It is the stage when fresh green leaves push through the fading petals and signal that flowering is truly coming to an end. In other words, the stage between full bloom and full leaf-out. 

To me, this stage in the cherry blossom's annual cycle is also very beautiful. You can usually a carpet of pink cherry blossom petals on the ground below the tree, with some blossoms also left on the tree in parts, as well as fresh new leaves. It's like all stages of life bundled into one for a brief, beautiful moment. An end and a beginning all at once, a gift from Mother Nature. 

So, it's no surprise that in classical poetry, "hazakura" often symbolizes moving on, the end of a joyful moment or the beginning of something new. I took the photo of the "hazakura" in this post yesterday, April 6th 2026. Have you seen any "hazakura" yet this year?