As the New Year rolls in, so too does it in Animal Crossing: New Horizons, where players may be looking ahead to cherry blossom trees reappearing on their island. Cherry blossom season only lasts for a limited amount of time each year, and has special DIY recipes associated with it and the bright pink blossoms which fall from the trees. Also known as the Cherry Blossom Festival, the springtime pastel foliage won’t reappear until April, a while after Animal Crossing‘s snow finally melts.
2022’s cherry blossom season can be expected to start April 1 and will only last until April 10. Very importantly, this time frame is only for those who have islands in the Northern Hemisphere. Spring falls on the opposite time of year in the Southern Hemisphere, where the Cherry Blossom Festival occurs from October 1 to October 10 instead. This is the only time of year players will be able to get cherry blossom series DIY recipes without getting them from other players, making it an important time for players to actively play and collect blossoms and recipes.
During the 10 days of the Animal Crossing Cherry Blossom Festival, hardwood tress will turn bright pink, mimicking the cherry blossom trees famously from Japan. Players will be able to use their nets to snatch cherry blossom petals that are floating by in the wind. These cherry blossom petals are used in crafting the seasonal DIY recipes, which fill the balloon gifts that can be shot down with a slingshot during cherry blossom season.
Cherry Blossom Season Leads Into Bunny Day
Although cherry blossom season alters the colors of the trees on the island, there is relatively little to actually do aside from catching the petals and collecting the cherry blossom series recipes. The more involved springtime holiday event, Bunny Day, comes shortly after the Cherry Blossom Festival. The final day of cherry blossom season will coincide with the arrival of special Animal Crossing character Zipper T. Bunny, who brings a whole week of preparation for Bunny Day, the Animal Crossing equivalent of Easter Sunday.
As soon as players are done collecting cherry blossom petals, Zipper’s week of preparation for Bunny Day begins, and painted eggs can be collected instead. Bunny Day, just like the cherry blossoms, brings its own set of DIY recipes, making springtime a busy collect-a-thon for New Horizons players. Those who have played the game from the beginning likely won’t have much collecting to do, but there may be a few new recipes added to the cherry blossom series in 2022. There’s only limited time left to create the perfect Animal Crossing Snowboy before the snow thaws and Animal Crossing: New Horizons‘ cherry blossom season is around the corner.