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Open 365 days a year, Mount Vernon is located just 15 miles south of Washington DC.
From the mansion to lush gardens and grounds, intriguing museum galleries, immersive programs, and the distillery and gristmill. Spend the day with us!
Discover what made Washington "first in war, first in peace and first in the hearts of his countrymen".
The Mount Vernon Ladies Association has been maintaining the Mount Vernon Estate since they acquired it from the Washington family in 1858.
Need help with homework? Our Digital Encyclopedia has all of the answers students and teachers need.
The Washington Library is open to all researchers and scholars, by appointment only.
Bee Balm is a tall summer-blooming perennial with brilliant red flowers subtended by a whorl of showy, red-tinged, leafy bracts. The aromatic leaves can be used for tea, but are susceptible to mildew, so this plant needs good air circulation. A member of the mint family, bee balm spreads readily by rhizomes…
This plant features brilliant orange flowers that light up the garden and are attractive to pollinators, including monarchs and honeybees.
The vibrant red blooms of the cardinal flower makes it an ideal plant for the shady summer garden. It reseeds readily and is ideal for naturalizing and sharing with friends.
Named for the time of day the bloom opens, four o'clocks will attract hummingbirds and nocturnal pollinators to your garden. This bushy plant reseeds readily, producing hundreds of large black seeds that resemble hand grenades.
This tall, late blooming perennial adds a pleasant blue to shady glades in the summer. Native to Virginia, it is often found along stream banks and in wetland areas. It self seeds enthusiastically.
One of the most cold tolerant hibiscuses, this plant has pale pink flowers with a red eye. It adds an interesting texture to the summer border.
This versatile hydrangea tolerates a wide variety of conditions and is ideal for borders or natural areas. It benefits from an annual pruning in late winter to prevent the heavy blooms from flopping.
This tall plant is crowned with purple-pink flowers in the late summer. It is an American native and tolerates a wide variety of environmental conditions. Its height and bloom time can be controlled by by pruning it back by half when it reaches about two to three feet.
This large, suckering tree produces fragrant showy flowers, followed by a bean-like seedpod and was used in times of scarcity to make a coffee-like beverage. The seeds are very toxic before roasting and should never be eaten raw.
This iconic evergreen tree of the south forms a wide spreading canopy and is often draped with Spanish moss. They are extremely resilient, which allows them to survive the severe weather patterns of the southern part of the country.
The pink and purple flowers of asters add color and height to the late summer garden. Due to their spreading habit they will naturalize when planted in the garden. A mid-spring trim will delay bloom time and help keep them restrained.
This towering perennial is crowned with clusters of brilliant purple flowers. The size can be kept in check by a mid-spring pruning.
This tall Virginia native has spires of bright pink flowers and can be seen growing along waterways and woodland trails. It makes an excellent addition the back of the border, but be prepared for some spreading. It does not earn its name by staying in one place, but due to the ability to manipulate…
Persimmons are an unusual American fruit that can colonize in abandoned fields and open woods. Female trees bear astringent orange fruits that become fully ripe after a frost.
Shining white flowers are attractive to pollinators and light up the garden. This type of hibiscus is fairly hardy in northern regions.
This plant is the largest hibiscus grown at Mount Vernon, as well as the longest flowering. Its brilliant red blooms are a bold statement in the summer border. It is native to the swamps and marshes of Alabama, Florida, and Georgia.
A tall, brash plant with chrome yellow flowers brightens the summer border. Easy to grow, it tolerates a wide variety of conditions, although a haircut in the spring will prevent flopping later.
This native plant is a medium deciduous tree with large white flowers in the spring and striking cigar-like seedpods in the fall. It features large heart-shaped leaves.
This dense suckering shrub tolerates wet soils and shade. In late summer it bursts into bloom, with long panicles of fragrant white flowers, followed by attractive yellow fall color.
On a winter's day, the sight of the sycamore's bright white trunk against a blue sky is breathtaking. This tree can grow to massive proportions when well-sited and should be given plenty of space, especially since they can be messy.
This semi-evergreen shrub is native to wetland areas and has an arching habit. Fragrant white flowers appear in summer followed by beautiful maroon foliage in autumn.
Classically planted in moist areas such as lakes and ponds, this elegant tree should be given plenty of room and planted well away from structures.
A more delicate species than its red-flowered cousin, bergamot has lovely lavender flowers and a more graceful look. It is attractive to bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds.
Winterberry is a relatively insignificant woodland plant until its brilliant red berries light up the winter landscape. It is a native shrub of eastern wetlands and provides excellent habitat for songbirds.
Yellow willows are often used as hedges and screens. They can be repeatedly cut down to encourage a bushy habit which shows off their flashy golden stems.
