2016 SMITHSONIAN GARDENS Smithsonian Gardens

Annual HIGHLIGHTS

Reflecting Back

their

and

historic supplier readily

OUR STORY An integral part of the Smithsonian Institution, Smithsonian Garden extends the museum experience in a public garden setting, inspiring visitors with innovative displays and educating them about horticulture, plants, the natural environment and artistic design. Smithsonian Gardens supports the Smithsonian in meeting its critical challenges of understanding and sustaining a biodiverse planet; interpreting the many roles that plants and gardens play in world culture; and understanding and preserving American history. A living classroom and urban sanctuary, Smithsonian Gardens provides a memorable, relaxing, and restorative destination for visitors to the Smithsonian and the National Mall. Nationally recognized for its significant collections, exceptional horticultural displays and educational programs, Smithsonian Gardens contributes unique professional expertise, best practices, and state-of-the-art operations to the field of horticulture.

Pollinator Garden, National Museum of Natural History

Major Projects Kathrine Dulin Folger Rose Garden Renovation

Pollinator Garden

The Kathrine Dulin Folger Rose Garden has been a treasured

Smithsonian Gardens

component of the Smithsonian landscape since 1998. In 2016, the

unveiled its newly

garden was expanded and renovated to continue that legacy. This

renamed Pollinator

exciting project was made possible through a generous grant from the

Garden to the public

Lee and Juliet Folger Fund.

on June 21 to kick

The redesigned Folger Rose Garden embodies the best practices in modern rose care and culture. Smithsonian Gardens staff spent months carefully selecting rose varieties. Good selection is critical to maintaining a beautiful and scented garden without constant disease pressure and pesticide application. The Folger Rose Garden reopened in the summer of 2016, giving visitors the opportunity both to surround themselves with beauty and better understand roses as a part of a larger ecosystem.

off Pollinator Week. The 11,000-squarefoot garden lies along the east side of the National Museum of Natural History near the National Mall. The name change reflects the growing importance of supporting

pollinator health championed by the formation of a task force by former President Barack Obama in 2014 and the implementation of the Million Pollinator Garden Challenge. As a key advocate for pollinators, Smithsonian Gardens’ reinterpretation of this space educates visitors about the wide diversity of pollinators and the types of plants that support them. The garden display also shows what can be done to create beautiful pollinator-friendly gardens.

“One in three bites of food you eat depends on pollinators. From butterflies and bees to flies and beetles, there are many different types.� -James Gagliardi Supervisory Horticulturist with Smithsonian Gardens.

New Pavement Trials

Rain Water Harvesting

This year, a permeable paving was trialed in several places in the landscape. This flexible, porous paving system utilizes recycled rubber with a custom color top-coat. Smithsonian Gardens will monitor the environmentally-friendly alternative to concrete and asphalt in the hopes that it offers a good solution enhance visitor safety and protect and enhancing our heavily used garden spaces.

Of particular note during FY2016 was the receipt of a $146,200 Collections Care and Preservation Fund grant from the Smithsonian.

This award supports the

purchase and contract installation of a rainwater harvesting system to irrigate the Smithsonian Gardens Orchid Collection by collecting and using rainwater rather than municipally treated water.

According to the

Smithsonian Collections Advisory Committee, this project celebrates innovation and supports sustainable collections care which will have a direct, substantial, and permanent impact on the health and preservation of the orchid collection.

Community Engagement and Education The Burpee Donation The Archives of American Gardens recently received an exciting donation of records relating to the W. Atlee Burpee & Company, once the world’s largest mail order seed company. Over 150 boxes of business records, publications, and photographic images generated by or related to the Burpee Company dating from the 1880s to the 1970s document the workings of the firm and its many efforts to market its wares to gardeners across the globe. The materials, ranging from correspondence and office ledgers to seed catalogs and ad mock-ups, join the Burpee Collection that was donated to the Smithsonian in the 1980s. Together, these records document a firm closely attuned to the marketplace. The Burpee Company trialed countless vegetable and flower varieties at its various farms in order to produce

plants having hardy, colorful, tasty, or aromatic characteristics. The newly received Burpee records will need a lot of attention before they can be made readily available for researchers. Old, acidic folders and boxes will need to be replaced with new archival folders and enclosures. Files, books, and ledgers will need to be surface cleaned with a soft brush in

Talking about Gardens!

order to remove dust and grit that have

In 2016, the Haupt Garden-

accumulated over the years. Rehousing the collection is just one step, however; a finding aid will need to be created so AAG staff and

based “Let’s Talk Gardens” lunchtime educational series expanded to 22 programs from

researchers know what’s in the collection.

May to September.

While it will be some time before the Burpee

Smithsonian Gardens staff

donation can be arranged and rehoused, we are glad to know it has found a home at the Smithsonian.

In total, 19

members delivered programs to 377 attendees.

“Our Community of Gardens open source project will capture stories and memories of gardens and gardeners of all backgrounds that have shaped America’s landscape. The response, so far, has been wonderful; the stories are emotional and empowering.” -Cindy Brown Education Manager, Smithsonian Gardens

Food in the Garden, at the National Museum of American History in August, explored how gardens and public green spaces have brought people together to build communities, learn, and heal throughout American history.

Smithsonian Gardens Green Ambassador Challenge The Green Ambassador Challenge is a project about sharing wisdom, life experiences, and local history in the context of gardens and green spaces. It is an opportunity for students to engage in real-world fieldwork and contribute a personal garden story to Smithsonian Gardens’ Community of Gardens digital archive. Interviews, anecdotes, and videos submitted by students will help researchers today and in the future better understand the value and meaning of gardens in American culture. A teacher’s packet helps classroom students plan, implement, and contribute to the Community of Gardens archive. Lessons in this project meet many national standards and students have the opportunity to practice their listening, recording, writing, and analyzing skills. By engaging with their own family and neighbors and the gardens around them, they will have the opportunity to explore the history present in their

Smithsonian Gardens supported the ever-popular American-Girl Doll

own neighborhoods and backyards.

high-tea program with garden-themed programming.

Treasured Volunteers Ben Addlestone

Eva Griffeth

Nina Pitkin

“Volunteers bring energy into the garden, and

Kim Alston

Christopher Guffey

Meridith Price

Terry Anderson

Shyama Haniffa

Serenity Purcell

keep us on our toes!�

Ann Balch

Anne Hardman

Nancy Rachman

Sandra Blake

Heather Hare

Laszlo Bockh

Joan Havens

Annette Ramirez de Arellano

Nancy Bort

Jamie Ann Hester

Prentice Bowsher

Lynne Hirschfeld

Paulina Donna Brandes

Gail Hodge

Susan Bruns Shahla Butler Sandra Chacko Toby Christensen Joseph Cialdella Eric Cohen Emily Cook Eugene Cross Loretta d'Eustachio

Charlene Huggins Heidi Johnson Peter Karvellas Joan Keenan

Casey Kneipp Barbara Kreiley Eva Lanyi Paige Larson Rebecca Lavash Judith Lesser

-Sarah Tietbohl Gardener, Smithsonian Gardens.

Bryan Ramsay Christine Rose Linda Rosenfeld Joy Rubin Shen Nancy Sahli Christina Schreiner Nathan Sell Jane Simpson Martha Smith Pat Taylor Ivana Terry Candace Thompson

Marguerite Dorgan

Jeanne Maloney

Elizabeth Trangsrud

Shruti Dube

Norman Marks

Jennifer Tucci

Karen Ewalt

Merril Mille

Marcy Wasilewski

Denise Fayne

Elizabeth Miller

Laurel Wessman

Lorraine Fishback

Susan Miller

Clarke Whitehead

Sara Florini

Patricia Mink

Marca Woodhams

Lynn Furrow

Audrey Morris

Smithsonian Gardens volunteers logged over 4,793 hours in 2016.

Lynda Garnett

William Peters

Many services and programs provided by Smithsonian Gardens would

Thomas Garnett

Bruce Pihlstrom

not be possible without the time, experience, and cheerful spirit

Linda Greensfelder Carol Pihlstrom

generously given by these volunteers.

Gardens’ Staff Mike Allen

Paula Healy

Debra Austin

Sarah Hedean

Joseph Brice

Kevin Hill*

Cindy Brown

Shannon Hill

Thomas Brown

Monty Holmes

Joe Brunetti

Matt Huber**

Matt Burch

Cheyenne Kim*

Casey Cate

Ed Kunickis

Erin Clark

Joel Lemp

Joyce Connolly*

Sherri Manning

Emily Cook

Brett McNish

Francis Cooper

Joe Mickens**

Kelly Crawford

Matt Millage**

Joe Curley

Tom Mirenda

Alexander Dencker

Darlene Price

Vickie DiBella

Christine PriceAbelow

Allison Dineen Kurt Donaldson

Melanie Pyle

William Donnelly

Michael Riordan*

Janet Draper

Daniel Russell

Randy Dudley

Marisa Scalera**

Kevin Duncan** Barbara Faust Matt Fleming

James Gagliardi Vanessa Garner Shelley Gaskins Jill Gonzalez Michael Guetig Nick Guy** Tom Hattaway

Jeff Schneider Rick Shilling*

Alex Thompson Sarah Tietbohl Holly Walker** Ophelia Willis** *Received Years of Service Awards **Newest additions

2016 Financial Snapshot What does it cost to run Smithsonian Gardens and where does the money come from? About two-thirds of the Smithsonian Institution’s budget is federally appropriated by the U.S. Congress.

Smithsonian Gardens receives much of

its operating funds from its parent organization, Smithsonian Facilities, which in turn submits an annual budgetary request to the Secretary of the Smithsonian.

Each year, the Secretary appears

before Congress to request a federal

appropriation for the entire Institution. A small portion of Smithsonian Gardens’ annual operating budget comes from trust funds, interest from endowments, donations, royalties, and licensing. In 2016, 99% of the budget was obligated thanks to the hard work of SG’s Administrative team; Vanessa Garner, Darlene Price, and Daniel Russell

under the leadership of Sherri Manning. The Smithsonian’s annual report includes details on its funding and expenditures.

Here is a quick

look at Smithsonian Gardens’ financial picture from Fiscal Year 2016.

CONTACT Smithsonian Gardens PO BOX 37012, MRC 506 Washington, D.C. 20013-7012 T: (202) 633-2220 E: gardens@si.edu www.gardens.si.edu Twitter - @SIGardens Instagram - @SmithsonianGardens SUBSCRIBE eNEWSLETTER | www.gardens.si.edu/whats-happening COMMUNITY OF GARDENS| www.communityofgardens.si.edu