The Arboretum is building a new rain garden this fall just inside the R Street entrance. This entrance will remain open during construction but traffic will be redirected through the R Street parking lot.

Join us for a School Garden Maintenance Morning on Saturday, September 18th from 9 AM to 12 PM at Washington Youth Garden at the National Arboretum. Connect with local garden experts, learn sustainable gardening techniques, and prepare your garden for fall and winter through this free event open to all. Free garden supplies are also available for DC school garden educators. Registration is not required but is highly encouraged.

Get all the bulbs you need for your garden at our Bulb Sale on Saturday, October 2nd at 9 AM. Stock up on bags of bulbs and ask advice from expert gardeners at this outdoor sale located in the New York Avenue parking lot directly inside the New York Avenue entrance. We also have a special gift for FONA members who attend the event!

Break out your running shoes and join us on Saturday, October 9th for FONA's Fall 5K run through the grounds of the National Arboretum. Tickets are $30 (20% off for FONA members) and include a complimentary Arboretum-themed neck gaiter for the first 200 registrants. There's even a virtual 5K option so you can participate from wherever you are.

4,155 pounds — that's how much fresh produce our team has grown and donated to the community so far this year. That's almost 200 pounds more than we grew in all of 2020!

The growing season is far from over, though. We hope to donate over 5,000 pounds of produce in 2021. Our garden team is planting fall crops like kale, lettuce, broccoli, cabbage, and beans in order to provide students and families in our community with fresh food as long as possible this fall and winter.

Volunteers make this work possible! We need extra hands in Washington Youth Garden to help weed, mulch, plant, harvest, and more.

Sign up to learn how you can help our Garden Team grow food and support our community with fresh produce. Volunteers work in shifts on Tuesdays, Fridays, and Saturdays.

As monarch butterflies make their way south for their fall migration, they're adding a touch of fall color to the National Arboretum with their brilliant orange wings.

While adult monarchs feed on nectar from many different kinds of flowers, they only lay their eggs on milkweed plants. At the National Arboretum, the Ellipse Meadow surrounding the Capitol Columns is full of 20 acres of milkweed and other wildflowers — the perfect place for monarchs to grow big and strong before moving south for winter.

Are monarchs visiting your garden? You can help scientists track the monarch migration by reporting sightings to the Journey North citizen science program.

Want to support monarchs and other pollinators? You can create a butterfly garden to fit whatever growing space you have. The Washington Post recently published an article sharing tips and tricks for growing pollinator gardens on a balcony or a yard of any size.

Thanks for nominating the National Arboretum for many "Best of DC" categories — now it's time to vote!

Voting ends September 19th — please vote for the U.S. National Arboretum for the following categories:

Our friends at the National Bonsai Foundation are also up for a few "Best of DC" categories. Check out what they're nominated for and help the entire Arboretum family shine this year!

The National Arboretum is accepting applications for an Education Specialist to plan, implement, and evaluate education programs relating to the Arboretum's gardens, plant collections, and research activities.