The United States Botanic Garden will feature an outdoor holiday display in 2021. Festive adornments, winterberries, lighted trees and shrubs, and conifers and greenery will be placed throughout the Garden from Nov. 24, 2021, through Jan. 2, 2022, closed on Dec. 25. An outdoor train display can be visited in the gated outdoor gardens during these dates between the hours of 10:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. Tickets are not required. The Conservatory and restrooms remain closed, due to the closure of buildings on the U.S. Capitol campus. While the full outdoor holiday display will officially begin on Nov. 24, some elements of the displays will be viewable at earlier dates, as they are installed.
The outdoor train display hours are 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. daily between Nov. 24, 2021, and Jan. 2, 2022, closed on Christmas Day, Dec. 25.
The gated outdoor gardens (Patrick Dougherty bicentennial stickwork sculpture, Rose Garden, Regional Garden of native plants, and more) are open from 7:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. daily, closed on Christmas Day, Dec. 25.
The Terrace Gardens and Bartholdi Park are open dawn to dusk daily. The display windows of the Conservatory will be lit 4:00 - 11:00 p.m. each evening.
No tickets are required to visit any area of the U.S. Botanic Garden. The Conservatory and restrooms remain closed, due to the closure of buildings on the U.S. Capitol campus.
This year, the outdoor holiday display will include a train display in the gated outdoor gardens, with trains running from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. between Nov. 24, 2021, and Jan. 2, 2022, closed on Christmas Day, Dec. 25. The trains will run through a display of agricultural scenes from across the United States and around the world, all made from plant parts. Tickets are not required to view the trains or any part of the USBG's outdoor holiday display, and the train display may not run during inclement weather. While the full outdoor holiday display will officially begin on Nov. 24, some elements of the displays will be viewable at earlier dates, as they are installed.
The farming scenes made from plant parts include:
Several windows of the Conservatory will feature displays that can be viewed from the Terrace from dawn to dusk. These windows will feature thousands of colorful poinsettia blooms and some of the Garden's collection of D.C. monuments and landmarks made from plant parts, such as the U.S. Capitol building and the Washington Monument. These display windows will be lit 4:00 - 11:00 p.m. each evening.
Learn about the plants that make up our famous DC landmarks buildings:
Learn about growing poinsettias, their history, and more!
Looking for information about previous Season's Greenings shows? Check the archive:
Holiday cheer abounds at the U.S. Botanic Garden! Despite the cold winter outside, the Conservatory boasts a tropical paradise, one of the largest indoor decorated trees in Washington, D.C. and a showcase of poinsettia and their plant cousins. It wouldn't be the winter holiday season without the fantasy train display in the East Gallery, which chugs along a track through imaginative structures created with plant materials. Explore the seven seas, using lighthouses to navigate your way through this year's scenic wonderland. Many of the capital's landmark buildings, all made from natural materials, will be on display in the Garden Court. Come in from the cold and enjoy the sights, scents, and sounds of Season's Greenings.
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