Cherry Blossoms along the Shore: drought in Kanagawa Prefecture, spring 2026

 

Cherry blossoms! On April 1, Yokohama Local Meteorological Observatory announced its indicator cherry tree reached full blossom. Since then, we have a couple of days for spring storm, but at least around my neighborhood they keep their best. Hurrah! They will be so beautiful even when they are scattering. I hope a couple of more days left for us to steep in their ephemeral splendor … That’s said, something strange is happening. For one thing, the Meteorological Agency announced their weather forecast for this week: it’ll be warm days including several “hot days” with the temperature at the level of June. Their next 3 months’ forecast also says “The average temperature in Kanto Region will be high, and rainy monsoon season could start earlier than usual.” Well, do you remember my “prediction?” Soon after cherry blossoms, summer will come.

The early coming of monsoon season should be welcome. Actually, this winter was so dry in the megalopolis Tokyo area. Kanagawa Prefecture was not an exception, nor Yokohama. Our reservoir lakes for water supply remain in critical condition. As of April 4th, the entire water storage rate for Kanagawa’s main water system, i.e. Sagami and Sakawa River Systems, is 39%. It’s after more than 2 weeks of on-and-off rainy days. The worst is Tsukui Lake with Shiroyama Dam (; my post on Oct 20, 2017). The lakeside Prefectural Park, Tsukui Shiroyama Park, is famous for its cherry blossoms. But … look.

When a reservoir is like this, so is upstream area. This is the recent Yadoriki Stream. The comparison tells obvious: water level is low.

At the end of March 2026.
Right bank is dry enough to become grassland.

Yadoriki Stream in standard March

Yadoriki Water Source Forest is for Sakawa River system whose reservoir lake, Lake Tanzawa, shows 46% of water storage rate, or 51% of average year on April 4th. Tsukui Lake, a reservoir lake for Sagami River, shows 16% of storage rate or 21% of average year. i.e. Yadoriki Stream has more water than the other water source forests in Kanagawa. It’s scary. Kanagawa Prefecture and Tokyo Metropolitan Government have a water sharing agreement, and in normal times the Prefecture diversifies 220 million m3 water per day to Tokyo from Sagami River. Since last month, Sagami River could not continue this, and the supply to Tokyo was reduced to 110 million, i.e. halved, per day. The rainfall from mid-March has not yet let reservoirs recuperate from the drought.

The water level immediately after
the water gate of Shiroyama Dam.
Could you see the water level is so low?

Water source area is like this, and so is the downstream, i.e. Yokohama. We Niiharu Lovers worry if this spring frogs have enough water for their eggs. Next to Yatoda rice paddies in Asahi-Yato of Niiharu, there are two small ponds. They normally hold water for gelatinous frog eggs. If it’s tube-like, they are eggs for toads. If they are foamier, they are for Japanese brown frogs. This year, none. Reason? Both of these bonds are dried up. Frogs need water from February to March for their tadpoles. If there is no water, they do not lay eggs to begin with. “It’s sad.” “Yes. Oh, I’ve found some eggs in ponds next to Ikebuchi Open Space.” “Me too! They are brown frogs, aren’t they.” “But you see? The other day, I’ve been there in dusk and heard an owl hooted in a tree over the pond.” “What!? They are eating eggs and tadpoles.” “Oh yes.” Survival of the fittest. This is a harsh year for frogs in Yokohama.

Dried up

From rice paddies another stream goes to
the (artificial) pond next to Niiharu Community Centre
 in Satoyama Park.
It also has poor level of water.
As the pond in the park is man-made,
it keeps water somehow. But …

Tadpoles in Ikebuchi pond.

If monsoon comes earlier than usual with enough rain, it could give some respite for our water system. Yet, volunteers who nurture Yatoda rice paddies in Niiharu are seriously worrying the prospect of this year’s rice harvest. I guess it’s not a problem only for amateur farmers in our community. With soring energy cost (i.e. it’s more costly pumping from agricultural waterway), low or none water level is worse for agricultural production by pros. Last year’s harsh summer yielded poor crop of potato and onions in Hokkaido, and the cost of these is shooting up now in supermarkets in Yokohama. Let us keep crossing our fingers as the situation improves and we have sufficient water supply this summer. God willing …

Small flow for
Asahi-yato rice paddies this March.
Correction: No flow.

The flows from Niiharu Forest gathers in Umeda River,
then to Tsurumi River.
Inevitably, the water level for Umeda River is low now.
 It would be good news for Egretta garzetta
to procure meals in Umeda River. But …

If you find environmental issues in Kanagawa Prefecture, please make contact with

Kanagawa Natural Environment Conservation Center 神奈川県自然環境保全センター
657 Nanasawa, Atsugi City, 243-0121
〒243－0121　厚木市七沢657
Phone: 046-248-0323

You can send an enquiry to them by clicking the bottom line of their homepage at http://www.pref.kanagawa.jp/div/1644/

Digression: suddenly Red Spiderlily

 

Er, I planned to post a continuing story of kakishibu dyeing, but before that, I have to report you this. Suddenly the temperature in Yokohama has dropped, and the flowers for early autumn have ‘bursted’ open around Niiharu.

Red Spiderlilies

Burr Cucumbers

Panicled Tick-Trefoil

Vigna angularis var. nipponensis

Especially red spider lilies will open just for 4-5 days of a year. This week is the chance for us un 2025 to admire its mysterious beauty. You wait, and the next bloom will be a year later. Don’t miss the chance!

Rhynchosia acuminatifolia

If you find a problem in the greenery of north-half of Yokohama, please make contact with

Office for the Park Greeneries in the North
北部公園緑地事務所

Yokohama Municipal Government Green Environment Bureau
横浜市みどり創造局

Phone: 045-353-1166
FAX：045-352-3086
email: mk-hokubukoen@city.yokohama.lg.jp

Will they flower this autumn？ Niiharu’s north facing slope of lilies 新治市民の森

 

Several years ago, the head of Nagaike Park of Hacioji City 長池公園, Mr. Hideshige Uchino, visited Niiharu Citizen Forest. He said the slope where Golden-rayed Lily blooms every July (; my post for July 28, 2024) was a precious place. Niiharu Forest locates at the edge of Tama Hills 多摩丘陵 which is basically a typical suburbia of Tokyo. The hills are covered by housing and business buildings with sporadic remnants of yester-centuries’ forests and farm fields. The slope of lilies in Niiharu is facing north and probably the underground water level is relatively high. Observing the vegetation, plants loving somewhat cooler conditions thrive there. Mr. Uchino said “Such environment is now rare in Tama Hills. Probably Niiharu’s slope is the only one left.” Hmmmmm … We have to protect it, you know. The place is covered by lilies, but they are not the only flowers showing off their beauty on the slope. Currently, flowers of Adenophora triphylla var. japonica is dominating the site, but if autumn comes as before, we will admire pale purple of wild Salvia japonica. If lucky, monkshood may return. And Japanese gentian should come in November … er, that is, if we can maintain the ground of the slope OK for these flowers.

Adenophora triphylla var. japonica

The thing is, Niiharu Forest is changing. I think we should use the term ‘evolving’ but I’m not sure whether the term is appropriate. Reason? Er … once the slope was a chestnut orchard. But in 2019, mega-typhoons came and destroyed old trees. The large and tall trees were down, and some poor trees were torn apart by strong winds. Until then Niiharu Lovers mowed the steep slope every August before chestnuts falling in order to collect autumn goodies easily. After the calamity, we did some mowing, but alas not much goodies from the tree. Besides, the chestnuts trees are really decaying. So, the serious mowing of the slope after flowering lilies is suspended. Then the City, the landlord, decided to redo the chestnut orchard with oak trees, and Lovers cleared the broken trees from the place. Aside from some afforestation by school kids this early summer the work for restoration of the forest is not yet started. The summer mowing is not done this summer.

Survived chestnut surrounded by grasses

It’s bad news for autumn flowers on the slope. Before, greedy Lovers mowed the place for chestnuts, which made the sun light reach to the ground and short seedlings of, say, Japanese gentian, could start vigorous photosysnthesis for blue flowering in late autumn. Yet, we still want to enjoy gentian at the beginning of winter. What to do? We Lovers chose to mow a small plot around the seedlings of such autumn flowers this summer. We pushed through tall sasa bamboos and Japanese bracken fern both of which dominate the slope, found seedlings of flowers, then cut these tall and ubiquitous grasses around the seedling, hoping it would help the babies to become beau in 2-3 months’ time. It is a delicate task, just like finding bugs in programming code … By the way, my PC Topy5 turned out to have magnetic head failure. It now really is “hospitalized” and undergoing a “surgical operation.” *sigh*

A sort of maze …

In a deadly hot August summer of 35°C temperature, the small plot mowing with concentration continued on the slope. After cutting covering vegetation, I found the soil around the seedlings is really dry. Not much rain has come this summer. Even if it comes, the tall grass prevented the rainwater reaching the ground. When the duration of rain is short, the water retained on the surface of dominating grass leaves evaporates quickly. I was alarmed.

Desiccated ground

One of my Forest Instructor pals has a day job for Kanagawa Water Supply Authority. He normally sits in front of the control panel for water distribution procured from Sagami 相模川 and Sakawa 酒匂川 Rivers. The Authority is in charge of management of Miho 三保ダム, Sagami 相模ダム, and Shiroyama 城山ダム Dams (; my posts for April 19 and 26, 2019) and operation for intake weirs from the two rivers. He knows the current condition of water supply in Kanagawa Prefecture. He said “Well, we don’t see any abnormality this year. Currently, all dams have more than 85% of water capacity. We soon will begin annual discharge from dams to prepare torrential rain of typhoons for Autumn.” I asked him if there is any special request from farmers for water supply. His reply was “Nah.”

His assessment may be correct for water source
 … this one is Yadoriki Stream … REALLY?

… He may have engaged in some PR stunt. But we at least haven’t heard any request for water saving from the authorities. On the other hand, also in a different occasion, personnel from JA Yokohama said this summer farmers in Yokohama are having hard time to irrigate their field. “You know, in such summer, casual watering does not seep into the ground. We have to hose down for hours to save our crops. It surely impacts the bottom line of the ag business.” Hmmmmmmm … I heard schools had difficult times moistening their lawn ground during summer vacations. Parents and teachers volunteered to tackle the task, but the baking sunshine of long day smirked human activity. Their lawn is brown. Meanwhile bitter melons of my garden do not get big. It needs more water. Weather forecasters predicted the record-breaking high temperature this week, already in September. Who said climate change is an imaginary thing?

Umeda River along Niiharu Forest.
Local farmers withdraw H2O from here, but …

I’m not sure if it is OK for rice paddies
dry this much in Yokohama’s August.

Niiharu’s pond is dried up.

If you find a problem in the greenery of north-half of Yokohama, please make contact with

Office for the Park Greeneries in the North
北部公園緑地事務所
Yokohama Municipal Government Green Environment Bureau
横浜市みどり創造局

Phone: 045-353-1166

FAX：045-352-3086
email: mk-hokubukoen@city.yokohama.lg.jp

Yearning for Spring: Plums have finally started to bloom in Yokohama

 

I think this winter is a sort of erratic. One day, it’s very warm like a spring day. Then Japan-sea Polar airmass Convergence Zone (JPCZ) came to snow madly in several areas of archipelago. Yokohama has so far been spared from disruption by snow, though it was damned cold last week. Maybe flowers are also confused. I feel the blossoming of plums is late this year. But finally this week, they started to smile in Yokohama. As of February 16, plums in Yokohama are still 30% or so opening … still, it’s something we’ve been waited.



One plum blossom

    One blossom's worth of warmth

                Hattori Ransetsu

                (Translation by Koichi Otsu.)



梅一輪

　一輪ほどの暖かさ

                    服部嵐雪

Ransetsu is a disciple of Matsuo Basho.

If you have any questions about Yokohama’s Green Tax and Green Up Plan, please make a contact with

Strategic Planning Division, Green Environment Bureau, City of Yokohama
横浜市みどり環境局戦略企画課

Phone: 045-671-2712

FAX: 045-550-4093

Email: mk-kikaku@city.yokohama.lg.jp

Strange flowers: Flower problem in Yokohama, October 2024

 

Yeah. Fall has begun finally. Though it’s still too hot for the end of October. Weather forecasters say almost as a mantra, this is the weather for the end of September. Temperature et al are in a month delay. In Yokohama, this weekend has been more or less cloudy. The forecasters explained it was due to the autumnal rain front which was normally observed at the end of September. Oh, yes, we all know it. It’s hot these days. The temperatures are still dancing merrily above 20°C (68°F) during daytime. Still, early morning or late evening, it is chilly. Many people struggle to adjust to a rollercoaster ride of weather. Last Wednesday, some weather forecasters issued a warning for violent fluctuation of atmospheric pressure (and temperature) that may cause some people headaches, nausea, etc.

Such travail is not only for humans, perhaps. I told you a story about skinny vampire leeches in Tanzawa last week. Poor creatures. For more lovable organisms, narrative is more or less the same. Flowers are strange this month. Lots of news reported awkward flowering patterns all over Japan. Famous gardens for cosmos or roses do not have enough opening even at the end of October, the high season of autumnal tourism. Maybe, summer-like October lets the vegetables miss the chances of blossoming. They are confused, I guess.

Even sweet autumn clematis open its flowers
 in the end of October, a month late.

In my neighborhood, there are home gardens having full opening of morning glories. In Yokohama, morning glories are flowers for July and August. It is almost a summer tradition for the 1st graders to record and report how they open the flower as homework. I wonder how they managed such a difficult task this year. Morning glories did not open during their summer holidays. Poor kids …

Yeah. Certainly they are lovely. But it is the end of October.

Seniors of Niiharu Lovers murmured their concern for cherry trees in a park near Nagatsuda Station. One of them is flowering. “Isn’t it a kind that has flowers in fall?” “No, no. It’s Someiyoshino. The tree gives us every spring a chance for cherry blossoms party in spring. It’s flowering now.” “Wow.” “Something is happening definitely.” “No doubt.” When flowers are strange, it follows odd fruiting. Japanese snowbell has lots of pretty starshaped flowers in late spring here. In October, when it is a normal year, the flowers become tiny fruits dangling from the twigs. Come December they would be fully-ripen and become nice meals for small wild birds in sleepy winter forests in Yokohama. Sadly this year, the tits could have a harsh winter with fairly limited supply of food, including the fruits of snowbell. Not only that, some snowbells have flowers now. *Gee … what’s going on now …” Poor birds.

Still Chinese hwawei are now singing around in Niiharu.

I’m also worried about Harlequin Glorybower. They should flower during summer here in Yokohama. In standard October, they give us a view of charming blue fruits wrapped in lovely purplish red calyx. For several years by now I’m collecting their blue fruits for my winter project. I need lots of them. I collect them in forests and freeze the bounty for the use. Now in October, I should be busy collecting the fruits of Glorybower. This October, nope. They are flowering now. Yeah, their white and pink at the bottom flowers are lovely. But they should come in July or August … What would happen for my project in this changing climate? Can I report you my adventure with Glorybower fruits soon?

Flowering Harlequin Glorybower in late October …!?

Fruits are there, but in October their calyx is still closing.

If you find a problem in the greenery of north-half of Yokohama, please make a contact with

Office for the Park Greeneries in the North

北部公園緑地事務所

Yokohama Municipal Government Green Environment Bureau

横浜市みどり環境局

Phone：045-353-1166
FAX：045-352-3086
mk-hokubukoen@city.yokohama.jp

Open! Cherry blossoms finally opened in Yokohama

 

So, we were anxious about the cherry blossoms this year. This weekend, THEY FINALLY OPENED THIS SPRING! Not only that, they are accelerating the speed of reaching full bloom, by hours.

Morning, Cerasus jamasakura in Yokohama

The same tree in the afternoon

It’s another type of cherry tree, garden species.

Somei Yoshino in Ikebuchi Open Space of Niiharu.
 Almost reaching to the full bloom ...

So, Naomi become suddenly uber-busy to visit the places with cherry blossoms. This is super short post for this week. I‘ll tell you my adventure with cherry blossoms next week. Sorry.

Cerasus incisa, an endemic species found around Mt. Fuji.

If you find environmental issues in Kanagawa Prefecture, please make a contact with Kanagawa Natural Environment Conservation Center 神奈川県自然環境保全センター

657 Nanasawa, Atsugi City, 243-0121
〒243－0121　厚木市七沢657
Phone: 046-248-0323

You can send an enquiry to them by clicking the bottom line of their homepage at http://www.pref.kanagawa.jp/div/1644/

Please don’t tease me … Cherry blossoms this year in Kanagawa Prefecture

 

Two months ago in January, weather forecasters told us that it was a warm winter, and thus cheery blossoms would come early, maybe around 20th of March as in 2023. Now, it is March 24th, and the “official” opening doesn’t come to Kanagawa Prefecture. “Official opening” = The first day when a specimen tree has more than 5 opened flowers. Specimen tree for Kanagawa Prefecture is in Yokohama Local Meteorological Observatory at Minatono-mieruoka Park.” It has been a cold week. So far we have not had many March days that reached more than 15°C for max temp. Accordingly, cherries are not yet ready for blossoming … maybe.

Violets are open.

Last week, I planned to see cherry blossoms in one of the well-known hiking courses. It was a fine warm day compared with the previous days. The spot was in the southern part of the prefecture (more to this next week), so I expected I could meet early blossoms under relaxing sunshine. Nah. Yeah, there were lots of cherry trees along the trek, but no tree had flowers. Their buds looked very tight yet. When a cherry tree is ready to open its flowers, the buds have bright pale green which will be calyx supporting the petals when it‘s open. I could not find a tree reaching to this level of readyness. Sad.

Eyes tightly-shut

If all of them open, it‘ll be spectacular.

According to Dr. Hisanori Itoh, Prof. Emeritas of Kyushu Univ., when cherrys could not experience enough cold days of winter, they feel groggy even when spring comes. So, they cannot burst out their flower, but start to open them in a protracted way. For the worst case scenario, before all the flowers open the temperature reaches the level of early summer, and so the cherrys fail to acomplish full bloom. In Hachijojima Island 八丈島, this is already happening, and people cannot enjoy the spectacle there. I don‘t think we are at this stage in Kanagawa Prefecture yet. But still ...

They are all cherrys.

Please keep crossing your fingers for me to be able to tell my adventure next week with cherry blossoms.

Wind flowers were already open.

If you find environmental issues in Kanagawa Prefecture, please make a contact with Kanagawa Natural Environment Conservation Center 神奈川県自然環境保全センター

657 Nanasawa, Atsugi City, 243-0121

〒243－0121　厚木市七沢657

Phone: 046-248-0323 You can send an enquiry to them by clicking the bottom line of their homepage at http://www.pref.kanagawa.jp/div/1644/