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Brooklyn Botanic Garden Cherry Blossoms Unscathed by Snow

 Blossoms at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden were just starting to bloom as the city got a dusting of snow Tuesday, April 15, 2014 and the next morning.
Cherry Blossoms
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PROSPECT HEIGHTS — Never fear, Brooklyn — the cherry blossoms survived the night.

Amid worries the unexpected snow Tuesday night and Wednesday morning would kill the cherry blossoms in Brooklyn Botanic Garden, the petals and buds survived.

The borough’s largest collection of cherry trees are “a little worse for wear” but mostly OK, the garden's horticulturalists found, according to spokeswoman Elizabeth Reina-Longoria.

“Last night’s frost and light snow did not really affect the cherry blossoms or other blooms too badly,” she said by email. “The temperature was similar to a cold refrigeration, which most blooms can stand for short periods.”

New Yorkers woke up Wednesday to find snow on blooming trees.

“Magnolia and cherry blossom are full and today we had a little snow. What is going on in NY?" Twitter user Miki Orihara wrote.

Park Slope resident Greg Pattillo, 36, said he was happy to hear the Botanic Garden's cherry blossom trees had survived the frost. The cherry blossom tree in his own backyard suffered a worse fate.

“It was so sad to wake up and see all the snow and see all the cherry blossoms had fallen off the tree. They were all gone," he said, adding that the tree in his yard had bloomed earlier than others in the neighborhood.

For those looking to see the Botanic Garden trees, the annual Sakura Matsuri cherry blossom festival will be held April 26 and 27. Enthusiasts can track the blooms as the festival draws nearer with the BBG’s “CherryWatch” tracker.

Admission to Sakura Matsuri is $25 for adults and $20 for students (12 to 17) and seniors (65 and over). BBG members and children under 12 years of age enter for free. The festival will be held rain or shine from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. every day.