Don’t stay at home when the weather is so gorgeous! Take your family or 
friends and go out! Plan a trip to one of the following parks or gardens. You will be surprised how much natural beauty Washington is hiding from you!
U.S. National Arboretum
An oasis of serenity, peace and fresh air, it is just two miles from the Capitol. Forests, meadows and ponds grace its 446 acres, but most visitors come to see the stunning collections of Conifers, Dogwoods, Boxwood, Hollies, Magnolias .jpg)
and Azaleas, which will all have their top blooming season in May. In the summer, you can also wander among the Herb garden.
Do not miss fantastic collection of bonsais in the National Bonsai and Penjing Museum that are on display throughout the year. You can tour the Arboretum’s grounds on foot, by tram, bike or car.
The Arboretum Grounds are open every day of the year (except December 25) from 8 am to 5 pm.
The National Bonsai & Penjing Museum is open from 10 am to 4 pm, so plan to visit this collection first if you visit late in the day.
Admission is free.
Two entrances: one at 3501 New York Ave NE, DC and the other at 24th & R Streets NE, DC off Bladensburg Road. Tel 202.245.2726. For more information go to www.usna.usda.gov
Dumbarton Oaks
The owner of the estate Mrs. Mildred Bliss .jpg)
and her landscape gardener Beatrix Farrand spent almost thirty years of close collaboration and planned every garden detail, each terrace, bench, urn, and border. It’s a natural gem located in residential Georgetown.
Entrance to the gardens is at R and 31st Streets, two blocks east of Wisconsin Ave, DC. Open daily except Mondays, from 2-6 pm. Closed during inclement weather and federal holidays.
Admission fee for season between March 15 and Oct 31 is: Adults $8, children $5. Garden season passes are also available. Tel 202.339.6401. For more information go to www.doaks.org
Hillwood
Hillwood was once the home of the legendary rich heiress, pioneering businesswoman, .jpg)
diplomat and distinguished collector, Mrs. Marjorie Post. Today you can experience her treasures on a self-guided tour through the Mansion transformed to an exceptional museum. Outside you can follow the path suggested by the audio tour or just wander as you please. You will admire French parterre, small rose and creative Japanese-style garden. Many visitors gladly accept to relax on the Vista Terrace or Lunar Lawn. Before you leave, have a look at the greenhouse with year-round blooming orchids.
Hillwood is open Tuesday through Saturday from 10 am to 5pm. Location: 4155 Linnean Avenue, NW Washington, DC 20008.
Nearest Metro: Van Ness (Red line). Estate donation: Adult $12, children $5. Tel 202.686.5807.
For more information go to www.hillwoodmuseum.org
Kenilworth Park & Aquatic Gardens
Kenilworth is the only National Park displaying a .jpg)
wide range of cultivated aquatic plants in more than 30 ponds (full of lotuses and water lilies of all colors and sizes). Spring is the best season for wildflowers in the marsh that borders the athletic fields and gardens. Late May through September is the best time for the blooming summer flowers. Winter, when leaves are off the trees, is the best time for birding at any of the sites.
Tip: Come early in the day to see open flowers, they may close when it gets too hot. Entrance: 1550 Anacostia Avenue, NE, Washington DC
Nearest Metro station: Deanwood (Orange line). Open from 7 am to 4 pm every day except Thanksgiving, December 25 and January 1. Admission is free. Tel 202.426.6905. For more information go to www.nps.gov/keaq
Tudor Place
Known nationally as a premier example of American neoclassical architecture Tudor Place belonged to Thomas Peter, son of the first mayor of Georgetown, and his wife Martha Custis, granddaughter of Martha Washington.
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The House tour highlights include over 100 objects originally belonging to George and Martha Washington, dining, drawing room, saloon, kitchen and bedrooms. The landscape of the garden has changed from its original agrarian use to the ornamental garden that you see today. Stroll the paths and explore the last owner’s personal creation of a garden filled with intimate spaces, beautiful plantings, fountains and sculptures.
The House tours are offered Tuesday through Sunday from 10 am to 3 pm. The garden is open Monday through Saturday from 10 am to 4 pm and Sunday from Noon to 4 pm.
Entrance: 1644 31st Street, NW, Washington DC (Georgetown). Admissions: House Tour: Adults $8, Children (6 and under) free. Self-guided garden tour: $3. Tel 202.965.0400. For more information go to www.tudorplace.org
White House Gardens and Lawns
Once a month during summer, The White House organizes Garden Tours. Visitors can see the Jacqueline Kennedy, Rose and Children’s Gardens and also the South Lawn of the White House.
The tours are open to the public; however free tickets are required. They are distributed by the National Park Service in the morning on each tour day.
For more details, contact White House Visitor Center (1450 Pennsylvania Ave, NW; Tel 1-800-877-8339) or check the Activities calendar on www.nps.gov/whho
Did you know?
In 1790 George Washington selected a ridge overlooking the Potomac River as the site for the President’s House. Known today as President’s Park, this was the first land acquired for the District of Columbia.
President Theodore Roosevelt formed the United States Forestry Service, and under his direction, lands were reserved for public use and huge irrigation projects were started.
Kenilworth Park & Aquatic Gardens is the only national park established for the propagation of water plants. This site is part of Anacostia Park in National Capital Parks - East.
Rock Creek Park has the only planetarium in the National Park System. It was built in 1960 and is located in the Rock Creek Park Nature Center.
Shenandoah National Park has over 500 miles of trails. Over 30% of the trails are in designated wilderness. 101 miles are part of the Appalachian Trail.
There are four “major” or large parks in the Capitol Hill Parks constellation. They are Folger Park, Lincoln Park, Marion Park, and Stanton Park.
The plantings of cherry trees originated in 1912 as gift of friendship to the United States from the people of Japan. The Yoshino cherry is the predominant variety that encircles the Tidal Basin and spills north onto the Washington Monument grounds.
Extremely rare at the beginning of the 20th century, white-tailed deer populations in Maryland have not only rebounded, but now number more than at any time in history.
Cattails may be among the most useful plants in North America. Almost all parts of the plant were eaten providing year round food.
The Old Stone House in the midst of Washington, D.C., is a simple 18th century dwelling that commemorates the daily lives of ordinary Americans who made this city, and this nation, unique.
(From the National Parks website)