"Season's Greenings: National Parks and Historic Places" 2026 holiday exhibit

Season's Greenings: National Parks and Historic Places 2026

Our annual holiday show returns to celebrate the season with poinsettias and evergreens, holiday decor, and a train show that celebrates America’s 250th anniversary by showcasing national parks and historic places! For more than a century, the National Park Service has protected, stewarded, and shared the beauty and history of America’s diverse landscapes and historic sites. Model trains will chug around recreations of iconic national parks and historic places made from hundreds of different plant parts. See the Grand Canyon landscape and historic buildings, George Washington’s Mount Vernon, the Statue of Liberty, Yellowstone National Park’s Old Faithful Inn, the Maggie L. Walker National Historic Site, and more. Our collection of D.C. landmarks made from natural materials returns, featuring the Lincoln Memorial, the U.S. Capitol, the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial, and many more, surrounded by an assortment of poinsettias from heirloom to newly developed varieties. The USBG will stay open late until 8 pm on December 8, 10, 15 ,17, 22, and 29 with live music during these holiday evenings.

Visiting Tips

The Garden is busiest on holidays and the weekends surrounding holidays. For a less busy experience, visit during the week if possible.
Strollers are welcome at the Garden, but personal property must be kept in the owner’s possession at all times.
The outdoor train display may not run during inclement weather.
Please be mindful of terrain changes (stone, gravel, grass, etc.) as you make your way through our outdoor gardens. For additional accessibility information, please visit our Accessibility page.

Hours

The outdoor train display and Conservatory hours are both 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. daily between Nov. 26, 2026, and Jan. 3, 2027, closed Dec. 25.
On date December 5, the gated outdoor gardens will open at 10:00 a.m. to accommodate the Garden’s sensory-friendly programming. For additional information on programs for special audiences, please visit our Accessibility page.
The Terrace Gardens and Bartholdi Fountain and Gardens are open dawn to dusk daily.
There is no admission fee and no tickets are required to visit any area of the U.S. Botanic Garden, including the holiday train display.

Evening Hours and Music

On select Tuesdays and Thursdays -- December 8, 10, 15 ,17, 22, and 29 -- the Conservatory and outdoor train display will have extended hours, staying open until 8:00 p.m. There will be live holiday music from 5-8 pm and food and drink vendors during these evenings.

Performers by date:

December 8: TrapCellist, R&B, Soul, and Hip-hop on acoustic cello
December 10: Kyung, violin and guitar duo plays pop and holiday songs on strings
December 15: Swingology, swing band plays hot jazz, bossa nova, manouche, swing, and traditional jazz
December 17: Luck Penny, Irish band plays Celtic music
December 22: Something Sweet Jazz, cocktail jazz blending retro allure and contemporary sophistication
December 29: Cariel Coates, jazz and soul blending jazz, R&B, soul, and reggae

Outdoor Train Display

This year, the outdoor holiday display includes a model train display in the gated outdoor gardens, with trains running from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. between Nov. 26, 2026, and Jan. 3, 2027, closed Dec. 25. The train display will run until 8:00 p.m. on select Tuesdays and Thursdays.

The trains will run through a display of national parks and historic places all made from plant parts. Tickets are not required to view the trains or any part of the USBG’s outdoor holiday display, and the train display may not run during inclement weather.

The models made from plant parts include:

MODEL / SITE, STATE, YEAR PLACED UNDER NPS

Denali Mountain, Denali National Park and Preserve, Alaska, 1917
Arctic Brotherhood Hall, Skagway Historic District and White Pass, Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park, Alaska, 1962
Totem Poles and Sign, Sitka National Historical Park, Alaska, 1972
Bright Angel Lodge, Grand Canyon Village Historic District, Arizona, 1975
Casa Grande Ruins National Monument, Arizona, 1918
Grand Canyon Landscape, Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona, 1919
Grand Canyon Railroad Station National Historic Landmark, Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona, 1974
John Muir House National Historic Landmark, California, 1962
Tharp's Log, Sequoia National Park, California, 1977
Cliff Dwellings, Mesa Verde National Park, Colorado, 1906
Old Stone House, Rock Creek Park, District of Columbia, 1973
Peirce Mill, Rock Creek Park, District of Columbia, 1890
Coral Reef, Dry Tortugas National Park, Florida, 1935
Cape Florida Lighthouse, National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom, Florida, 2004
Freedom Tower National Historic Landmark, Florida, 1979
Dr. King's Birth Home, Martin Luther King Jr. National Historic Site, Georgia, 1974
Volcano, Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park, Hawaii, 1916
'Iolani Palace National Historic Landmark, Hawaii, 1962
Sacajawea and Pomp, Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail, Idaho, 1978
Mammoth Cave National Park, Kentucky, 1941
Fort McHenry National Monument and Historic Shrine, Maryland, 1925
National Park Service Arrowhead Emblem
Cape Hatteras Light Station, Cape Hatteras National Seashore North Carolina Light: 1935, Park: 1953
Earthlodge Dwellings, Knife River Indian Villages National Historic Site, North Dakota, 1974
Taos Pueblo National Historic Landmark, New Mexico, 1960
"Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas" Sign, Nevada, 2009
Theodore Roosevelt Home, Sagamore Hill National Historic Site, New York, 1962
Liberty Enlightening the World, Statue of Liberty National Monument, New York, 1924
Mount Rushmore National Memorial, South Dakota, 1933
Graceland National Historic Landmark, Tennessee, 1991
Arches National Park, Utah, 1929
Maggie L. Walker National Historic Site, Virginia, 1975
Monticello National Historic Landmark, Virginia, 1960
Mount Vernon National Historic Landmark, Virginia, 1960
Philippi Covered Bridge, West Virginia, 1972
Devil's Tower National Monument, Wyoming, 1906
Old Faithful Inn, Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming, Inn: 1973, Park: 1872

Conservatory decor featuring DC Landmarks Buildings and Poinsettias

Inside the Conservatory, explore more than 20 landmarks and monuments from around D.C. made from many different plant parts. Each building is a unique plant-based masterpiece. Distinctive architectural details are fashioned from hundreds of dried plant materials. Learn about the plants that make up our famous DC landmarks buildings:

DC Landmarks Building Materials Guide (U.S. Capitol, Washington Monument, Lincoln Memorial, and more ...)

Gift Shop and Coffee, Drinks

A gift store run by the Friends of the U.S. Botanic Garden and local D.C. small business Rewild will offer a variety of botanically-themed gifts for purchase in the Conservatory's West Gallery, open 10 a.m. - 5 p.m. daily.

Vintage Views will offer coffee, hot chocolate, and other drinks and snacks for sale just inside the gated outdoor garden near the trains.

Sensory-Friendly Program Dates

These early or late openings provide museum access to individuals with cognitive and sensory processing disabilities and their families by offering early entrance for registered participants, pre-visit materials, and a take-a-break space. For additional information on programs for special audiences, please visit our Accessibility page.

Upcoming events:

Poinsettias

Our Horticulture team grows thousands of poinsettias each year. Learn about growing poinsettias, their history, varieties new and old, testing more sustainable growing media, and more!

Archive of previous holiday shows

Looking for information about previous Season's Greenings shows? Check the archive:

2014: Season's Greenings: Lighthouses (November 27, 2014 - January 4, 2015)

Holiday cheer abounds at the U.S. Botanic Garden! Despite the cold winter outside, the Conservatory boasts a tropical paradise, one of the largest indoor decorated trees in Washington, D.C., and a showcase of poinsettia and their plant cousins. It wouldn’t be the winter holiday season without the fantasy train display in the East Gallery, which chugs along a track through imaginative structures created with plant materials. Explore the seven seas, using lighthouses to navigate your way through this year’s scenic wonderland. Many of the capital’s landmark buildings, all made from natural materials, will be on display in the Garden Court. Come in from the cold and enjoy the sights, scents, and sounds of Season’s Greenings.