In 1909 Mayor Ozaki of Tokyo suggested sending 2000 cherry trees to the U.S. as a gift. First lady, Helen Herron Taft accepted this suggestion, and 2000 trees arrived in 1910. However, those trees turned out to be infested with insects and all had to be burned.
Mayor Ozaki was disappointed, but he did not give up. He suggested sending trees again. This time the team was very careful in handling the trees, and obtained help from specialists from the start of the tree-growing process. In March of 1912, 3020 trees arrived safely in the U.S., and people were impressed because every single tree was healthy. About 1800 of those cherry trees were planted around the Tidal Basin in Washington DC, and the rest were planted in the Potomac Park.
