We went to the
National Arboretum over the Christmas holiday, mistaking it for the
Botanical Gardens where they set up an outdoor train display. That's what we really intended to see. Since we were already at the Arboretum, we decided to stay.
Our first stop was the National Bonsai and Penjing Museum, a display of plants from China and Japan.
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A nice sign |
Bonsai trees are typically highly sculpted and some live for hundreds of years. The first one we saw was a Japanese White Pine (pinus parviflora 'Miyajima').
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A good size tree |
Other plants in the garden are more modest, like this Himalayan Mayapple (podophyllum hexandrum).
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Has some cover |
A nearby plaque shows various ways to cut a bonsai tree.
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Styles, like at the barber shop! |
A lot of the trees were much larger than I anticipated based on my pop-culture understanding of bonsai.
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Very tall tree |
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Bigger than bushes |
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Not pine trees |
The most interesting tree was one that dates back to 1625. It was handed down in the family for generations. A disaster almost befell it--the family lived in Hiroshima when the Americans bombed the city during World War II. The garden was protected by a concrete wall, so the plants (and family) survived. The tree is styled as a mushroom cloud in commemoration of the event. The family donated the tree in 1976 as part of the American bicentennial celebration.
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Looking good at almost 400 years old |
One striking display in the Arboretum is not a plant. Twenty-two columns are set up in the middle of a field. They are from the U. S. Capitol. The columns were installed in 1826 on the building's east central portico. Many presidents were inaugurated in front of them. A 1958 extension of the east wing caused the columns to be removed and replaced. The columns were eventually set up in the Arboretum, in 1990! The location even has a little reflecting pool, which was not full since it could freeze over in the winter months.
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Capitol columns |
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The dry pool |
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Dedication of the pool |
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The column tops |
Across the field is a base and a capital from one of the columns.
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Easier to see close up |
Across the driveway is a hill full of azalea bushes. It's amazing to find such a quiet and peaceful spot in the chaos of Washington, D. C.
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Azalea bush |
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Holly with berries! |
We should probably come back in nicer weather when the plants are in bloom. The location is not hard to get to and parking is plentiful.
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