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  • Several weeks ago, the Farm Monitor crew got a chance to visit the Smithsonian in Washington,

  • D.C. We had the opportunity to explore the 13 gardens that enhance any visit to the nation's

  • capitol and the Smithsonian museums. [Washington, D.C. - Kenny Burgamy, Reporting]

  • Any visitor to the world's largest museum and research complex known as the Smithsonian

  • Institute will notice the intricate gardens that are professionally maintained just outside

  • the Washington buildings. The most widely visible of the Smithsonian consist of nineteen

  • museums and galleries as well as the National Zoological Park. Seventeen of these collections

  • are located in Washington, with eleven of those located on the National Mall.

  • [Barbara Faust - Dir. of Smithsonian Gardens] The, the Smithsonian Gardens mission is to

  • enrich the Smithsonian experience, through horticultural exhibits, fine gardens, collections,

  • and education. What I do as director of the Smithsonian Gardens is leave, lead an incredible

  • group of horticulturalists, gardeners, and volunteers. It's um; it's just the dream job,

  • really. It's a dream a job for me. I always say I have the best job in the, uh, room.

  • [Kenny] The director of the Smithsonian Gardens said

  • it is hard to comprehend the world's largest museum facilities without the horticultural

  • flavor. [Faust]

  • I can't even imagine that. I mean the gardens are such an integral part of the Smithsonian

  • experience. In fact, I think you know, when the visitor steps on our grounds, they're

  • surprised by the incredible, fine gardening that's going on here at the institution.

  • [Kenny] The Smithsonian Gardens are expansive and

  • require a large staff, working year round. [Faust]

  • Well, we have 13 gardens. We uh, we do gardens that are thematic around each of the museums,

  • that are located here, on the National Mall. Our newest garden will be the National Museum

  • of African American History and culture, which will open, in mid- September. Uh, but we also

  • have uh, our American History gardens which includes a victory garden, uh, a vegetable

  • garden, uh, as well as at our Natural History museum, we have an urban bird habitat, which

  • um, which uh, helps to educate the public on how to uh, attract wildlife to their backyards,

  • as well as a butterfly habitat garden, which we are in the process of renaming, a pollinator

  • garden, and renaming, and reinterpreting, so that, um, again, we encourage the public

  • to learn how to uh, to build gardens that are healthy for pollinators.

  • [Kenny] And what you see up and down the national

  • mall is actually a small portion of what is down by the staff of the Smithsonian Gardens.

  • [Faust] One of the, one of the things about being

  • a public garden is that you've got to be able to have plant material that is readily available,

  • and particularly public gardens that want to do something a little bit different. And

  • so, our garden, our gardens, um, the plant material is mostly supplied by our greenhouse

  • nursery division. This is a 64,000 square foot greenhouse facility that is off site,

  • located about 10 miles, in Suitland, Maryland. Not open to the public, but maybe by appointment.

  • We do have some individuals that come by and see our incredible facility. And there we

  • have 16 individuals that are growing uh, tropical plants to, to bedding plants, and also curating

  • and managing our orchid collection. You know one of the things I am really worried

  • about is that there are not enough students going into the field of horticulture, agriculture

  • in general. Uh, we really have a hard time finding good candidates. We have a hard time

  • finding um, interns to come and learn about, particularly our field of public horticulture.

  • So I, I think this is something we all need to get behind and work on.

Several weeks ago, the Farm Monitor crew got a chance to visit the Smithsonian in Washington,

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