Model of the U.S. Capitol Building
Here is something to do with the family during the holidays. “Season’s Greenings” is back at the U.S. Botanic Garden in DC. The exhibit will run from Thanksgiving Day, November 23, through New Year’s Day, January 1, 2024, and closed on Christmas, December 25. This holiday display is both indoors and outdoors.
Outdoors, G-gauge model trains will circulate through displays of pollinators made from plant parts. These scenes will range from oversized models of native U.S. flowers, butterflies, bats, and hummingbirds to an orchid bee pollinating a vanilla orchid flower, a chocolate midge pollinating a cacao flower, a lemur pollinating a traveler’s tree flower, and more! The trains will run between 10:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. each day.
Inside the Conservatory, holiday decorations will include nearly 2,000 colorful poinsettias and the Garden’s collection of DC monuments and landmarks, such as the U.S. Capitol building and the Lincoln Memorial, all made from plant parts. Recent additions to the collection will return, including the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial, the U.S. Botanic Garden’s historic 1800s Conservatory and Palm House interior, and the National Gallery of Art East Wing.
A gift store managed by the Friends of the U.S. Botanic Garden and local DC small business Rewild will offer botanically themed gifts for purchase in the Conservatory’s West Gallery. Zeke’s Coffee will offer coffee, hot chocolate, and snacks for sale near the trains on select days.
Lincoln Memorial
The Conservatory is open 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. daily, the gated outdoor gardens are open from 7:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. daily, and the Terrace Gardens and Bartholdi Gardens are open dawn to dusk daily. The Garden will be closed December 25. Tickets are not required to view the trains or any part of the U.S. Botanic Garden. The trains will run between 10:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. each day and may not operate during inclement weather.
The Garden will offer extended evening hours on three Thursdays: December 14, December 21, and December 28. The Conservatory and train display will be open until 8:00 p.m. these evenings, with live seasonal music to enjoy while exploring the holiday displays and plants in the Conservatory.
