The year's first cherry blossom blooms were observed in Seoul on Wednesday, the earliest on record due to unusually high temperatures and long daylight hours in February and March.

The Korea Meteorological Administration(KMA) said Thursday that this year's blooms came three days earlier than last year and 17 days earlier than the average from 1981 to 2010.

The weather agency added that it is the earliest to date since 1922, when data on cherry blossom blooms began to be compiled.

The KMA considers cherry blossoms starting to bloom when at least three blossoms are detected on a branch of a designated tree at a KMA weather station located in Seoul’s Jongno District.