US National Arboretum :.

Tuesday, February 9th
The Administration Building, Bonsai Museum, and grounds will be closed.

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DIRECT ARBORETUM SUPPORT
Donations -- Volunteering

PRIVATE SUPPORT GROUPS
Friends of the National Arboretum
Herb Society of America
National Capital Area Garden Clubs, Inc.
National Bonsai Foundation


Arboretum Introduces Oakleaf Hydrangeas for Small Landscapes

If you’ve always wanted an oakleaf hydrangea in your garden, but existing cultivars were too large, then you’re in luck. The U.S. National Arboretum has just released two new compact forms of oakleaf hydrangea (Hydrangea quercifolia), a shrub native to the southeastern U.S. ‘Ruby Slippers’ grows to about 3.5 feet tall and 5 feet wide and has large panicles of flowers that mature to a deep rose color. ‘Munchkin’ is slightly smaller, at 3 feet tall and 4.5 feet wide, and has flowers that age to a medium pink color. Both cultivars are hardy from zones 5 to 8 and can be grown in light shade or full sun. They are ideal for the shrub border, as a deciduous hedge, or for mass plantings in large areas. ‘Ruby Slippers’ and ‘Munchkin’ were developed at the arboretum’s worksite located at the Tennessee State University Nursery Research Center in McMinnville, TN. They are the result of approximately 12 years of controlled pollinations, selection, and testing. Prior to their release, ‘Ruby Slippers’ and ‘Munchkin’ were evaluated by cooperators throughout the U.S. It is expected that these new cultivars will be available in the retail market in 2011. Check out our ‘Ruby Slippers’ and ‘Munchkin’ fact sheets for more information on these exciting new plants. Click here for more detailed information.

IMPORTANT NOTICES

Arboretum Virtual Tours Whole Campus, Fern Valley, Asian, Conifer, and Bonsai Collections	Monday, February 15th (Washington’s Birthday) Administration Building & Bonsai - CLOSED Grounds - OPEN All Day	A Classical Chinese Garden at the U.S. National Arboretum.
Arboretum Plant Introductions View plants developed by arboretum scientists and find one that's right for you!	2010 Internships Now Available	Gardening Tips & Ideas at the U.S. National Arboretum.

EDUCATION

Spotlight on Conifers!

Conifers provide the garden with a rich range of colors, shapes, and textures year-round, and are especially striking during the winter. Come to a “Talk and Tour” of our extensive conifer collection with our horticulturist, Mariya Navazio, who will guide you through this diverse and fascinating group of plants. For more information on conifers, see our webpage on the Gotelli Collection.

Due to weather forecast and garden conditions, this program has been rescheduled to Sunday, March 7.

Talk and Tour: Conifers: Where in the World Did That Come From?
March 7, 1:00 pm-3:00 pm
Auditorium and Grounds

Some gardeners see the more outlandish conifers and wonder where they could possibly have come from. Take a tour of the Gotelli Collection of Dwarf and Slow-Growing Conifers with the arboretum’s conifer expert who will focus on the origins of these plants and emphasize those that are native to North America. Rain date February 7. Fee: $12 ($10 FONA) Registration required. For more details, click here.

View Arboretum Calendar of Events

HORTICULTURE
Salvia leucantha Midnight image

A Rainbow of Color for Your Autumn Garden

Autumn in the National Herb Garden is one of the most colorful sights at the U.S. National Arboretum. A key player in that display is the Salvia collection. This group of plants, otherwise known as sages, offers gardeners a tremendous variety of plant form, color, and texture for their planting designs.

A quick stroll down the Salvia border in the National Herb Garden will introduce you to over 60 different types of sage, some with large leaves, others with small feathery leaves; some have red flowers, others have purple and chartreuse. Additionally, sages range in size from less than 1 foot, which is perfect for the front of a garden bed or ... Read Full Story.

View What's Blooming

RESEARCH

USDA Grant Awarded for Development of a Microarray System
for Universal Detection of Plant Viruses

A USDA National Research Initiative grant was recently awarded to Dr. John Hammond and Dr. Ramon Jordan of the U.S. National Arboretum's Floral and Nursery Plants Research Unit, in collaboration with scientists at several other institutions. The grant is for $999,735 over a period of three years, with the goal of developing the capability to detect and identify plant viruses, from any type of plant, to at least the viral genus level.

Most existing methods of virus detection are either virus-specific, or detect a number of related viruses within one group, and are unable to detect viruses of other taxonomic groups. In contrast, the microarray will consist of thousands of oligonucleotides (short DNA ‘probes’), each derived from nucleic acid sequences conserved between the genomes (RNA or DNA) of members of a particular taxonomic group, or between isolates of a particular viral species. These ‘probes’ are spotted in an array to a support surface. Total nucleic acids from plants are ... Read Full Story

View Plant Introductions and Award Winners

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United States National Arboretum
3501 New York Avenue, NE; Washington, D. C. 20002-1958
Tel: 202-245-2726 Fax: 202-245-4575

The U.S. National Arboretum is a division of the
Beltsville Agricultural Research Center of the Agricultural Research Service of the U.S. Department of Agriculture

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Last Updated February 8, 2010 10:24 PM
URL= http://www.usna.usda.gov
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