Visit America's Public Garden in Washington D.C.
Capitol of the United States has Public Events at the Botanic Garden
Nov 21, 2008
The United States Botanic Garden is one of North America’s oldest botanic gardens. It includes the Conservatory, National Garden and Bartholdi Park. This public garden is open to visitors free of charge.
The Conservatory includes plant collections and seasonal events held throughout the year. At the center is the jungle, a tropical rainforest, with a dome rising 93 feet. Visitors will experience the feeling of being in a jungle tree canopy by going to the mezzanine level. The stepped waterfall flows into a narrow river that is traversed by a wooden bridge.
The National Garden is outside, west of the Conservatory. It is planted with natives representative of the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. This area includes a rose garden and the First Ladies Water Garden.
Bartholdi Park is also outside, south of the Conservatory. At the center of the triangular shaped garden is a fountain sculpted by Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi. The planting beds reflect American garden trends and have many plant combinations for gardeners to take note.
Holiday DC Events
During winter months, the children’s garden and southern exposure gardens are closed. However, the United States Botanic Garden has plenty of plant color to see inside and out, given Washington D.C.’s hardiness zone range, 7 - 8.
The main doors open onto the garden court that from November 27, 2008, to January 4, 2009, will display Windows to Wonderland. The National Mall Landmarks collection handcrafted from plant materials and a train garden will be part of this holiday exhibit.
On display in the garden court are flowering plants include gardenias, orchids and pentas. Plant groupings of foam flowers, begonia rex and coleus are displayed in combinations for home garden ideas.
Botanic Garden Collections
The United States Botanic Garden’s mission is to acquire and maintain plant collections for exhibition, study, conservation, and exchange. The collections cover subjects such as economic, medicinal, carnivorous and Mid-Atlantic regions. Plant collections include orchids, succulents and ferns.
The garden court is filled with plants that have economic value. Plant examples such as Musa textiles the Manila Hemp plant; demonstrate the story of plant use. The Manila Hemp plant is native to the Philippine Islands, used to make fabric, wrapping paper and rope.
Plant Conservation Labeling
Plants are labeled with a combination of plant genus, family, common name, cultivar and native country. Gardeners, looking for plant ideas for home gardens, can use this information to later look up culture needs.
In addition, some plants have metal stake labels from the World Conservation Union Red List. This labeling identifies the plants survival status in the world. For instance, Araucaria heterophylla, Norfolk Island pine is listed as vulnerable on its plant stake.
The United States Botanic Garden cooperates with the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora as a rescue center for plants confiscated at United States borders. If rescued plants are unable to return to the original country, surviving plants are kept and protected.
Permission received for all photos used in this article.
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