U.S. Botanic Garden

04/22/2022

Our Children's Garden has opened for the season, and we are excited to welcome you and your little humans back to this space tailored to give them a place to interact with plants and gardening! The Conservatory is open 10 a.m. - 5 p.m. daily.

04/22/2022

Happy Earth Day! How about a heart-shaped leaf to celebrate Earth Day? This vibrant pothos (Epipremnum aureum 'Neon') in our Garden Court caught the attention of visitor Anita Kobylińska. Hope you can share some love for plants around you this Earth Day!

04/22/2022

Join us in celebrating National Volunteer Week with this Volunteer Spotlight! Mildred Long has volunteered helping with festivals since 2006.

What is your favorite part of the Garden?
My favorite part of the Garden is the jungle/Tropics house.

What’s the most fun thing you do while volunteering?
I love the special festivals that the Garden has during the year. I love greeting our visitors and interacting with the children. I try to make our visitors feel that they’re our special guests and it could not have happened if they weren’t in attendance. I also love to dance when the Richmond Indigenous Gourd Orchestra is playing. I truly am a “Gourd Groupie.”

What is your favorite plant?
I love the Cacti family.

What does volunteering at the Garden mean to you?
The Garden is my “Peace of Mind.” When I’m volunteering at the Garden, it’s as if I’ve stepped into an oasis of tranquility and beauty -- a place where I can visit plants from other countries without having to leave the Garden. The Garden is my happy place. It brings me great joy to see our visitors take delight in the beauty of the Garden, and what makes it even more special is that it’s all free to them. The Garden has a lot to offer to everyone. Clocking my volunteer hours wasn’t important to me because the Garden is my “Magical Place.” It’s where you can always find happiness.

Thank you to Mildred and all of the USBG volunteers!

04/21/2022

It's National Volunteer Week, and we are thrilled to celebrate the many USBG volunteers! Morris Klein has volunteers with the Gardens & Grounds Horticulture team since 2003.

What is your favorite part of the Garden?
I truly enjoy all sections of the Garden, for I become engrossed in witnessing the cycle of plant life and its symbiosis with birds and insects. Now the miracle is spring growth mysteriously and rapidly popping up out of the earth and as buds on the many trees. Over the years I have volunteered in Bartholdi Gardens, in the gated outdoor gardens, the Rain Garden, and the Terrace Gardens abutting the outside of the Conservatory. I get a feeling of accomplishment and that in helping the gardening employees I have place and purpose.

What’s the most fun thing you do while volunteering?
I enjoy the opportunity to work outside to help make the Garden beautiful and to witness nature – a bee pollinating the indigo plant, the swallowtail butterflies flying near the butterfly and cotton ball bush, to hear the myriad of song birds, and to note that the bed I assisted in preparing is now bursting forth in color. I appreciate the kind manner of both employees and visitors as I clean the beds.

What is your favorite plant?
My favorite plant is seasonal. In the spring I like seeing the beautiful iris display, in the summer I am fascinated by the cotton ball plant and the butterflies it attracts, in the fall I enjoy the striking color of the Stokes Aster and the Hostas and in the winter I enjoy seeing the small birds eating the hanging pomegranates.

What does volunteering at the Garden mean to you?
Being retired and in my 80s, while working in the garden I commune with nature, relax, and enter a light meditative state. In seeing over time how the Garden responds to the attention given to it by the staff and myself and noting how the visitors respond I feel we have done something important and we have honored the public through nurturing life and beauty.

Thank you to Morris and all the USBG volunteers!

04/21/2022

Glide through some tulips (Tulipa spp.) with us!

04/21/2022

Join us in celebrating National Volunteer Week with this Volunteer Spotlight! Pat Pileggi has volunteered as a docent, leading tours of the Conservatory and Barrtholdi Fountain and Gardens since 2018.

What is your favorite part of the Garden?
My favorite part of the conservatory is the Plant Adaptations room; I’m amazed at how different species form symbiotic relationships with each other and love telling stories to visitors about those relationships. I love visiting Bartholdi Gardens in February just to smell the incredible aroma of witch hazel, a sign that Spring is just around the corner.

What’s the most fun thing you do while volunteering?
When not giving tours, and just walking through the Conservatory, I enjoy when visitors ask me about a plant that I’m not familiar with. On the rare occasion that a plant is not labeled, I use my iNaturalist app to identify the species and share the information with the visitor. Sharing that learning experience is always fun.

What is your favorite plant?
In Plant Adaptations, it’s a toss-up between the bullhorn acacia (Vachellia cornigera) and the ant plant (Hydnophytum formicarum). I enjoy telling the stories about the specific adaptations of these plants and the symbiotic relationships these plants have with insects.
In the Orchid house, my favorite is Darwin’s orchid (Angraecum susquipedale), an incredible story about how species co-evolve and how the scientific community persists in uncovering that story.

What does volunteering at the Garden mean to you?
I enjoy volunteer activities that include a learning component, and the U.S. Botanic Garden does that; there is always something new to see and learn about. I also like the social component of the Garden, engaging with visitors, and the wonderful group of volunteers and staff.

Thanks to Pat and all of our USBG volunteers!

04/20/2022

Ask an Expert: Outdoor Pest Management (Online Q&A)

Are bugs bugging you? Rodents wreaking havoc? You're not alone! Pests plague every garden, big and small. Join Emily as she shares how pests are managed at the Capitol Grounds and Arboretum -- a space shared by many people, plants, and animals -- and takes questions about your garden concerns.

Presenter: Dr. Emily Mueller, Plant Health Care Specialist at the Capitol Grounds and Arboretum

This program was recorded on Friday, March 25, 2022.

Find upcoming programs and recordings of previous programs at www.USBG.gov/OnlinePrograms

04/20/2022

It's National Volunteer Week, and we couldn't be more excited to celebrate the many USBG volunteers! Here's a short interview with volunteer Meg Lawrence. Meg has been volunteering since 2009 with our Horticulture Collections Team at the Production Facility and the talking with visitors at Discovery Carts.

What is your favorite part of the Garden?
My favorite part of the garden is the Garden Court. I always find it cheerful.

What’s the most fun thing you do while volunteering?
I have the most fun working behind the scenes at the Production Facility, but the Busse Cart [about the building models made from plants] is equally as fun during the holiday show.

What is your favorite plant?
My favorite plant is the coffee tree.

What does volunteering at the Garden mean to you?
Volunteering allows for personal growth and knowledge, and it creates an opportunity to share the joy of the USBG with others.

Thank you, Meg, and all of the U.S. Botanic Garden volunteers!

04/19/2022

The USBG Gift Shop run by the Friends of the U.S. Botanic Garden and REWILD is now open daily! Offerings include plants, botanical prints, souvenir magnets, and many more botanical offerings. Find the shop in the West Gallery of the Conservatory from 10 A.M. to 5 P.M. daily alongside the “Cultivate: Growing Food in a Changing World” agriculture exhibit.

04/19/2022

Spring flowers and vibrant new leaves are everywhere throughout the native plants in our Regional Garden! Join us for this photo tour for some of the many blooms, including flowering dogwood, rhododendrons, buckeye, and more!

04/18/2022

Join us Saturday for "Unexpected Spring Foraging," a free online program with Alexis Nikole Nelson . She’s fabulous, funny, and a forager — join Alexis for an exploration of some of the surprising edible plants you can find in D.C. and the Mid-Atlantic region this spring. Alexis will share her foraging expertise to help you find some scrumptious plant-based delicacies. Spring is here -- let's eat! Register at https://app.livestorm.co/u-s-botanic-garden/unexpected-spring-foraging-online-lecture?type=detailed

Intended Audience: All-Levels.

DATE: Saturday, April 23
TIME: 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. ET
LOCATION: online
FREE: Pre-registration required. Register at https://app.livestorm.co/u-s-botanic-garden/unexpected-spring-foraging-online-lecture?type=detailed

04/18/2022

Join Thomas Thursday at 10:30 am for a live online program to find out what’s happening this spring in the Kitchen Garden! Get tips on vegetable garden preparation, spring crops, and planning ahead for the summer season. Come with your questions and leave with expert advice to make your vegetable garden thrive!

Presenter: Thomas Crawley, Advanced Gardener
Intended Audience: All Levels.

Ask an Expert: Spring Kitchen Garden Preparations (Online Q&A)
DATE: Thursday, April 21
TIME: 10:30 a.m. to 11:15 a.m. ET
LOCATION: online
FREE: Pre-registration required. Register at https://app.livestorm.co/u-s-botanic-garden/ask-an-expert-spring-kitchen-garden-preparations-online-q-and-a?type=detailed