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Hi, I'm Neil, the host of the good news podcast.

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This is your source for good news, fun stories and Sonic Joy.

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All of this goodness is coming to you from beautiful Chicago, Illinois.

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Today's good news comes to us from Washington DC where the famous tidal basin cherry trees are facing some climate change related issues but also getting some major assistance both scientifically or horticultural and diplomatically too.

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A little bit of background.

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The title basin is a big manmade reservoir in Washington DC and it is famous for springtime cherry blossoms all around the area.

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They are a major tourist attraction but it has been harder and harder to be a tree right on the edge of this basin due to climate change and rising sea levels, brackish water from the Potomac have been coming in and rising up higher and higher out of the basin sometimes and drenching these trees which are not particularly well suited for that much water and salty water.

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So that leads us to today where the National Park Service is planning a major refurbishment of the area.

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And sadly, that means ripping out a number of cherry trees.

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I've seen a couple different numbers in different stories.

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But it seems like at least 150 trees will need to be removed for the work that will be done, including an internet famous and I guess real world famous tree by the name of Stumpy.

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I think we've talked about Stumpy on the good news podcast before, but Stumpy is man, a pretty bedraggled cherry tree right on the edge of the title basin and it's a tree that really looks like it should be dead, but it just keeps on looming year after year.

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Its resilience has earned it a cult following people all over the world are sad to see Stumpy go transplant.

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Wouldn't really be a great option because Stumpy has essentially no insides.

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Stumpy is a tube of bark with a few branches that are still holding on and still producing beautiful blooms.

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If you can, I'd encourage you to check out some pictures.

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Stumpy is just barely hanging on.

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So here comes the good news.

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The National Park Service is working with the National Arboretum to take cuttings and propagate stumpy.

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So that in the future, we might just see a stumpy sapling planted around the tidal basin so that a clone of stumpy may live again.

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Propagation is a little bit tricky and doesn't always work.

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But I think everyone involved knows that stumpy is a popular tree and is going to work really, really hard to give this tree a second life.

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And President Biden was recently meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and they came together to announced that Japan is sending 250 new cherry trees to help replace the ones that are being pulled out along the tidal basin.

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The trees that are there currently were a gift from Japan in 1912 as a sign of friendship between Japan and the US and these new trees are meant to show the continued commitment to friendship that our two countries have so stumpy.

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The famous cherry tree will live on with the help of science and in general, the cherry trees in Washington DC will be replenished with the strong diplomatic ties we have to Japan and those are two pieces of pretty darn good news.

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That's the good news I have for you today.

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Enjoy the rest of your day.

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Thanks for listening.

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If you've got good news or an idea for the show, amazing.

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The music you hear on the show is from Paddington Bear.

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Have a great day.