FONA Field Notes

Richard Evans Schultes was a 20th century biologist who studied medicinal and toxic plants used by Indigenous peoples in the Americas. Throughout his career, he advocated for conservation of the…

Dig into the principles of forest gardening with Lincoln Smith, founder of Forested. Forest gardens are a form of permaculture that integrate edible trees and plants into landscapes. With a background in agronomic…

Our education program team was busy connecting with students virtually this spring. Already in 2021, we: distributed 2,136 Grow@Home kits to 28 different schools and educational institutions (that’s as many as we made in…

Elke Mackenzie was a botanist and polar explorer who scoured arctic landscapes for lichen during the mid-twentieth century. Her exhaustive collection and description of lichen, primarily from the Stereocaulon genus, remains our greatest understanding…

In this week’s FONA Field Notes, we are sharing resources to reflect on Junteenth’s history, appreciate the impact of food and agriculture on the holiday, support local Black-owned businesses and…

We’d like to introduce you to the newest member of our Washington Youth Garden team — our new truck! Our old truck served us well for many years but came…

Starting June 1, 2021, the National Bonsai & Penjing Museum is officially open to the public every day from 10 AM to 4 PM. All outdoor portions of the Museum…

The frost-tolerant Valencia oranges we know today were created in the early 20th century by Lue Gim Gong, a Chinese American horticulturist and farmer. Lue immigrated to the United States…

The groundbreaking ceremony for the Capitol Columns was 35 years ago, on May 13, 1986. From footage in our records, here’s a video clip of then-Vice President Bush’s speech where…

Washington Youth Garden is turning 50! Since 1971, our garden has served thousands of students all over Washington, DC and provided hands-on education to connect youth to food, the land,…