For Immediate Release
November 21, 2005
Digital images available
Media Contact:
Emily Coleman Dibella (703) 799-8607
edibella@mountvernon.org
MOUNT VERNON, Va. – Mount Vernon welcomes warmer weather with a new event – a festive Spring Garden Party on April 15 and 16, 2006, from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Free wagon rides through George Washington’s fruit garden and nursery, charming early-American musicians in the ornamental and kitchen gardens, and informative demonstrations on incorporating 18th-century techniques into modern gardens are just some of the “favors” at the Spring Garden Party! Free seed packets will be given to visitors, who may also purchase heirloom plants and garden items at the annual Gardening Days gift sale, which starts this weekend and runs through May 7. Activities are included in regular admission.
The Spring Garden Party is the opening event for Gardening Days at Mount Vernon, a three- week celebration of Washington’s enchanting, colorful gardens. Guided 30-minute walking tours focusing on Washington’s innovative landscape design are offered at 11:00 a.m., 1:00 p.m. and 3:00 p.m.
At the annual Gardening Days gift sale, visitors may acquire plants propagated from historic cuttings on the Estate, as well as flowers, plants, herbs, and seeds from Mount Vernon's operating greenhouse. The wide variety of annuals and perennials for sale includes heirloom seeds cultivated at Mount Vernon using 18th-century techniques. Gardening accessories, books, and other items inspired by Mount Vernon’s gardens are also available.
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Public Information: 703-780-2000; 703-799-8697 (TDD); www.mountvernon.org
Since 1860, over 80 million visitors have made George Washington’s Mount Vernon Estate & Gardens the most popular historic home in America. Through thought-provoking tours, entertaining events, and stimulating educational programs on the Estate and in classrooms across the nation, Mount Vernon strives to preserve George Washington’s place in history as "First in War, First in Peace, and First in the Hearts of His Countrymen." Mount Vernon is owned and operated by the Mount Vernon Ladies’ Association, America’s oldest national preservation organization, founded in 1853. A picturesque drive to the southern end of the scenic George Washington Memorial Parkway, Mount Vernon is located just 16 miles from the nation’s capital.
Hours of operation: April-August, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.; March, September, October, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.; November – February, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Regular admission rates: adults, $13.00; senior citizens, $12.00; children age 6-11, when accompanied by an adult, $6.00; and children under age 5, FREE. Admission fees, restaurant and retail proceeds, along with private donations, support the operation and restoration of Mount Vernon.
