The U.S. Botanic Garden, created in 1820, is dedicated to demonstrating aesthetic, cultural, economic, therapeutic and ecological importance of plants to human well-being.
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The easiest way to reach us is by taking Metro to Federal Center SW station. The United States Botanic Garden (USBG) is the oldest continuously operating public garden in the United States, founded in 1820. The Garden informs visitors about the importance, value and diversity of plants, as well as their aesthetic, cultural, economic, therapeutic and ecological significance. With more than a million visitors annually, the USBG strives to demonstrate and promote sustainable practices. The Garden is a living plant museum accredited by the American Alliance of Museums and Botanic Gardens Conservation International.
Operating as usual
Another Amorphophallus has been blooming -- Amorphophallus bulbifer, native to Burma (Myanmar). The peachy-pink inflorescence stands about 2-3 feet tall. Click through to see the bloom progression, a crosscut showing all the flowers inside, and the creation of bulbils!
Join us Friday as we explore recipes from here in D.C. to around the world and the plants that bring these recipes to life. In this month's local chef series, Chef Andrew demonstrates surprising sandwich-inspired recipes highlighting the use of scallions, pistachios, tomatoes, tea, and more! Join us to discover dishes and cuisines that celebrate how plants shape our food and culture.
Presenter: Chef Andrew Markert, Owner/Operator of Beuchert's Saloon and Fight Club
DATE: Friday, May 14
TIME: 12:00 p.m. to 12:45 p.m. ET
LOCATION: online
FREE: Pre-registration required
REGISTER at https://app.livestorm.co/u-s-botanic-garden/a-twist-on-sandwiches-with-fight-club-local-chef-series-online-cooking-demo?type=detailed
Join us Friday as we explore recipes from here in D.C. to around the world and the plants that bring these recipes to life. In this month's local chef series, Chef Andrew demonstrates surprising sandwich-inspired recipes highlighting the use of scallions, pistachios, tomatoes, tea, and more! Join us to discover dishes and cuisines that celebrate how plants shape our food and culture.
Presenter: Chef Andrew Markert, Owner/Operator of Beuchert's Saloon and Fight Club
DATE: Friday, May 14
TIME: 12:00 p.m. to 12:45 p.m. ET
LOCATION: online
FREE: Pre-registration required
REGISTER at https://app.livestorm.co/u-s-botanic-garden/a-twist-on-sandwiches-with-fight-club-local-chef-series-online-cooking-demo?type=detailed
Each day, more peonies begin to bloom throughout the Garden. This is Paeonia 'Coral Supreme,' an early season bloomer. This salmon-coral, semi-double hybrid was first introduced in 1964. It stands about 2-3 feet tall and is hardy USDA zones 3-7.
Check out the answer to this week's Plant Riddle, created for the Garden by author and naturalist Melanie Choukas-Bradley. Did you guess correctly? #PlantRiddle
I mistook a cicada for this name
Although they’re not one and the same
The sweetest substance from a bee
Completes the moniker of this tree
Answer: honey locust (Gleditsia triacanthos); pea or legume family (Fabaceae). The honey locust tree blooms in May with small greenish-yellow flowers that hang in clusters called racemes. The leaves are alternately arranged, pinnately or bipinnately compound with small, delicate leaflets that give the overall leaf a feathery appearance and turn bright golden yellow in the fall. The tree bears large, sometimes branched, thorns, although nurseries have cultivated thornless varieties.
Honey locusts produce long, twisted pods (as much as 16 inches in length!) that contain large oval seeds surrounded by a sweet pulp that gives the honey locust its name. The pulp attracts many animals, including deer and domestic livestock like cattle and horses, who eat the pulp and can disperse the seeds over long distances. This has contributed to the spread of honey locust well beyond its original central U.S. range. In some parts of the world, it is considered invasive. Honey locust is naturalized in Maryland and Virginia, but you are more likely to see it planted rather than growing wild in the immediate D.C. area. Honey locust is one of several common trees in the legume family that grow well in city parks and gardens including the outdoor Regional Garden of the U.S. Botanic Garden.
Happy #NationalCactusDay ! You might be tempted to give your cactus a hug, but their prickly protection of their water inside might convince you to love them with your eyes! Shown: the mesmerizing geometry of Mammillaria spinossisima
Happy #NationalCactusDay ! You might be tempted to give your cactus a hug, but their prickly protection of their water inside might convince you to love them with your eyes! Shown: the mesmerizing geometry of Mammillaria spinossisima
Columbine (Aquilegia canadensis) is blooming in the Garden and throughout the D.C. area. This wildflower is native throughout eastern North America, and many hybrid variations also introduce many different color combinations for the garden. They tolerate full sun to part shade, and the flowers attract hummingbirds. Are you seeing columbines blooming in your area? What colors?
Join us Tuesday at noon for this second online program celebrating the Garden's bicentennial -- an exploration of the U.S. Botanic Garden today and into the future. Since its founding in 1820, the Garden has evolved through time, while staying true to its mission of connecting people and plants. This panel will discuss the Garden's current and future plant collections, science and conservation work, education, outreach, and more.
Tuesday, May 11, 12-1 p.m. Eastern
online, free
REGISTER at https://app.livestorm.co/u-s-botanic-garden/usbg-at-200-part-2-branching-outward?type=detailed
Panel:
* Dr. Saharah Moon Chapotin, USBG Executive Director,
* Jim Adams, USBG Horticulture Manager;
* Dr. Susan Pell, USBG Deputy Executive Director;
* Amy Bolton, USBG Public Programs Manager;
* Moderator: Devin Dotson, USBG Public Affairs Specialist
Join us Tuesday at noon for this second online program celebrating the Garden's bicentennial -- an exploration of the U.S. Botanic Garden today and into the future. Since its founding in 1820, the Garden has evolved through time, while staying true to its mission of connecting people and plants. This panel will discuss the Garden's current and future plant collections, science and conservation work, education, outreach, and more.
Tuesday, May 11, 12-1 p.m. Eastern
online, free
REGISTER at https://app.livestorm.co/u-s-botanic-garden/usbg-at-200-part-2-branching-outward?type=detailed
Panel:
* Dr. Saharah Moon Chapotin, USBG Executive Director,
* Jim Adams, USBG Horticulture Manager;
* Dr. Susan Pell, USBG Deputy Executive Director;
* Amy Bolton, USBG Public Programs Manager;
* Moderator: Devin Dotson, USBG Public Affairs Specialist
Here's a new Plant Riddle, created for the Garden by author and naturalist Melanie Choukas-Bradley. Share your guesses below or using #PlantRiddle. We'll post the answer tomorrow.
I mistook a cicada for this name
Although they’re not one and the same
The sweetest substance from a bee
Completes the moniker of this tree
Paphiopedilum glaucophyllum orchid blooming in the Tropics house. Native to Central Sumatra and Java, where it grows in forests and rocky areas such as inland cliffs and mountain peaks. It is an endangered species, threatened by human development and agriculture.
Paphiopedilum glaucophyllum orchid blooming in the Tropics house. Native to Central Sumatra and Java, where it grows in forests and rocky areas such as inland cliffs and mountain peaks. It is an endangered species, threatened by human development and agriculture.
Happy Mother’s Day! Flowering dogwoods have been brightening up the springtime at eye level with their showy white and pink bracts. This is Cornus florida ‘Cherokee Princess.’ This variety is known for early blooming with large quantities of very white bracts.
Clouds of blue from this eastern bluestar (Amsonia tabernaemontana ‘Storm Cloud’). The species is native throughout much of the eastern United States, and has distinctive blue star-shaped clusters of flowers in the spring. The ‘Storm Cloud’ variety has near-black stems. It is hardy USDA zones 4-9.
Soft yellow blooms on this Parodia warasii cactus, native to Brazil
Soft yellow blooms on this Parodia warasii cactus, native to Brazil
Saturday at noon, USBG gardener Craig will leading a live Q&A all about Seasonal Vegetable Gardening. Looking for strawberry growing tips? Wondering about tomato and pepper varieties? Need help with support structures and trellising? Bring your questions and join Craig online for some late-spring vegetable gardening Q&A.
Saturday, May 8, 12 p.m. to 12:45 p.m. ET
online, free
REGISTER at https://app.livestorm.co/u-s-botanic-garden/online-q-and-a-seasonal-vegetable-gardening?type=detailed
Saturday at noon, USBG gardener Craig will leading a live Q&A all about Seasonal Vegetable Gardening. Looking for strawberry growing tips? Wondering about tomato and pepper varieties? Need help with support structures and trellising? Bring your questions and join Craig online for some late-spring vegetable gardening Q&A.
Saturday, May 8, 12 p.m. to 12:45 p.m. ET
online, free
REGISTER at https://app.livestorm.co/u-s-botanic-garden/online-q-and-a-seasonal-vegetable-gardening?type=detailed
This climbing Banksian rose (Rosa banksiae ‘Lutea’) is bursting with yellow flowers. It climbs and covers arbors and trellises with spreads up to 15-20 feet. The Lutea variety has double yellow flowers and produces the most flowers of the various Banksian roses.
Soft, snowy blooms in this green Hawthorne (Crataegus viridis ‘Winter King’). This rose family native of the southeastern United States, grows to 20-35 feet tall and equally wide. ‘Winter King’ is mostly spineless, has purple and scarlet fall color, and gives many blooms.
Mother's Day is perfect for a delicious cake, preferably served in a serene and beautiful setting. Join Danielle for this online cooking demonstration as she shows you how to make a floral tea cake. Then join Adrienne as she walks you through planting warm-weather annuals like tomatoes, peppers, and zucchini for best results.
Presenters: Danielle Cook, MS, Nutritionist, and Cooking Instructor, and Adrienne Cook, Gardening and Cooking Writer
Find the recipe and other cooking demos on our Cooking page at www.USBG.gov/Cooking
Thank you, Hill Rag for including us in sharing about how to identify and deal with rose rosette disease. If you’re seeing small, twisted leaves on your roses, read on to see if you might be seeing rose rosette disease, plus resources for more information.
Mia Grosjean started noticing it late last year. All over the Hill, the once-ubiquitous, beautiful rose bushes were starting to look different. Shriveled. Less joyful. “Like witches’ broom,” she
Join us Friday at noon for a free Seed Starting program!
Garden writer Teresa Speight will help you learn how to start your garden from seed to seedling. She'll discuss what soil or soil-less mix to use, seed selection, how to read a seed packet, and most importantly how to plant your seeds. What kind of lights should you use? Can seeds be direct sown in the garden and when? What does 'hardening' off seedlings mean? This information-filled hour will help you start a beautiful summer garden from seed to soil.
Friday, May 7, 12 p.m. to 1 p.m.
online, free
REGISTER at https://app.livestorm.co/u-s-botanic-garden/starting-seeds-for-a-successful-season?type=detailed
Join us Friday at noon for a free Seed Starting program!
Garden writer Teresa Speight will help you learn how to start your garden from seed to seedling. She'll discuss what soil or soil-less mix to use, seed selection, how to read a seed packet, and most importantly how to plant your seeds. What kind of lights should you use? Can seeds be direct sown in the garden and when? What does 'hardening' off seedlings mean? This information-filled hour will help you start a beautiful summer garden from seed to soil.
Friday, May 7, 12 p.m. to 1 p.m.
online, free
REGISTER at https://app.livestorm.co/u-s-botanic-garden/starting-seeds-for-a-successful-season?type=detailed
Spotlighting another native North American azalea: the Florida Azalea (Rhododendron austrinum). This easy-to-grow shrub is native to the lower southeastern United States, and its fragrant flowers attract hummingbirds and bees. It grows in part shade, prefers dry, acidic soil, and is hardy USDA zones 6-9. This specific variety is ‘Lisa’s Gold,’ introduced in 1999.
Our native azaleas are blooming throughout the mid-Atlantic. This is Azalea canescens, native to eastern and central United States. This shrub grows to about 8 feet tall, and is lightly fragrant. It is the most common native azalea in the southeastern United States, growing in part shade.
The first peonies are beginning to bloom around the Garden. This is Paeonia 'Blaze,' a large hybrid peony first introduced in 1973.
Garden moment of zen — calm breeze, chirping birds, and vibrant flowers of Loropetalum chinense ‘Zhuzhou’
A celebration of the outstanding colors over the last few weeks for this Chinese fringe–flower (Loropetalum chinense ‘Zhuzhou’)!
What a stunning spring color combination the Horticulture built around the Bartholdi Park sign!
Very deep pink-red color on this flowering dogwood variety (Cornus florida ‘Cherokee Chief’). It has a plant patent from 1958, by Isaac J. Hawkersmith of Tennessee. He found a dogwood at his nursery with the unusual color and grafted buds from it onto seedlings. The discovery sparked the creation of a large dogwood-producing industry in Franklin County, Tennessee.
Kaenpferia rotunda -- This ginger’s bright blooms emerge from its partial dormancy before the leaves.
Kaenpferia rotunda -- This ginger’s bright blooms emerge from its partial dormancy before the leaves.
A stunner! Eastern camas / wild hyacinth (Camassia scilloides). A perennial wildflower in zones 4-8 that grows in full sun to partial shade. Attracts bees and butterflies.
A stunner! Eastern camas / wild hyacinth (Camassia scilloides). A perennial wildflower in zones 4-8 that grows in full sun to partial shade. Attracts bees and butterflies.
New spring blooms on this tree peony (Paeonia rockii ‘Zi Hai Yin Bo’)
A nice bloom on this woodland Chinese peony (Paeonia obovate var. willmottiae)
April is the perfect month to dig into your vegetable garden! Are you getting ready to transition from cool to warm season crops? Need help identifying and staying ahead of weeds? Want to pick up a few mid-spring growing tips? Then join Amanda for answers to your questions and strategies for an enjoyable and abundant season in your vegetable garden.
Presenter: Amanda Helin, Gardener, U.S. Botanic Garden
This program was recorded on Monday, April 5, 2021.
Find upcoming programs and recordings of previous programs at www.USBG.gov/OnlinePrograms
Happy Arbor Day! As we wrap up the final day of National Native Plant Month, today we feature a beautiful small tree: Sweetbay magnolia (Magnolia virginiana)
Cup-shaped, creamy-white flowers nicely contrast against matte-green leaves in the early summer. Come autumn, cone-like fruits with exposed red seeds put on a beautiful show. Light: full sun to part shade. #NationalNativePlantMonth
Happy Arbor Day! As we wrap up the final day of National Native Plant Month, today we feature a beautiful small tree: Sweetbay magnolia (Magnolia virginiana)
Cup-shaped, creamy-white flowers nicely contrast against matte-green leaves in the early summer. Come autumn, cone-like fruits with exposed red seeds put on a beautiful show. Light: full sun to part shade. #NationalNativePlantMonth
U.S. Botanic Garden and NatureServe are launching a new partnership in the name of conserving U.S. native plants! Our combined expertise will help us tackle two critical areas of plant conservation – assessing threats to at-risk plants and safeguarding the wild relatives of crops – while also educating the public about the growing risk of plant extinction.
Using grape species native to the United States and critical to the wine industry (Vitis spp.) as a model, the partners will develop conservation plans, complete conservation status assessments, and conduct educational programs. Crop wild relatives like these, the closely related plants of agricultural staples like grains, fruits, and vegetables, are critical to the future of food security as they can often withstand diseases and pests and thrive under a variety of environmental conditions.
Learn more: https://www.usbg.gov/working-together-save-plants-us-botanic-garden-and-natureserve
100 Maryland Ave SW
Washington D.C., DC
20001
The easiest way to reach us by Metrorail is by taking either the Orange, Blue, or Silver line to the Federal Center SW station. Exit the station, walk north (left) along Third Street SW for two blocks, cross Independence Avenue and continue one more block to Maryland Avenue. Look toward the Capitol and you will see the glass dome of the Conservatory. The Conservatory entrance is on Maryland Avenue. Metrobuses #32, 34 and 36 stop behind the Conservatory at Independence Avenue and First Street SW. We encourage taking public transportation, you can plan your trip on Metro. The National Mall route of the DC Circulator bus stops on 3rd St SW by the Capitol Reflecting Pool, in front of the Conservatory.
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The United States Botanic Garden (USBG) is the oldest continuously operating botanic garden in the United States and informs visitors about the importance, value and diversity of plants, as well as their aesthetic, cultural, economic, therapeutic and ecological significance. With more than a million visitors annually, the USBG strives to demonstrate and promote sustainable practices. The Garden is a living plant museum accredited by the American Alliance of Museums and Botanic Gardens Conservation International.
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