Gardens & Grounds

George Washington had a green thumb, a trait often lost in deference to his achievements on the battlefield and in politics. In fact, while serving in the Revolutionary War and as the first president of the United States, Washington’s mind – and letters home – frequently turned to Mount Vernon and his ideas for landscape design. His carefully planned gardens featuring unusual 18th-century flowers have been expertly maintained and are on display for visitors.

For a peek at just a few of the plants growing in Washington's upper garden this season, see the slideshow at right.

A quarter-mile forest trail leads through woods of oak, holly and laurel trees, past Washington’s cobble quarry, a Native American site, and over a bridge spanning a steep ravine. Interpretive signs throughout the trail describe animals that once roamed the forests of Mount Vernon and identify those that still do. Guests experience a tranquil and peaceful setting in a forest largely unexplored for 200 years. The beginning of the quarter-mile trail is at the George Washington: Pioneer Farmer site.