The Smithsonian Heirloom Garden highlights many types of plants that have been passed down from generation to generation. The plants chosen for this garden have been cultivated in American gardens prior to 1950. Filled with annuals, perennials, bulbs, shrubs and trees, the Heirloom Garden brings wonderful color and aroma to the terrace which wraps around the National Museum of American History. Although many of these plants are considered "old-fashioned" and not frequently seen in modern gardens, it is hoped that you will be inspired to grow one or more of these heirlooms in your own garden.

Visitors will notice different flowers in bloom each month they frequent the Heirloom Garden. Which flowers can you expect to see as the seasons change? Click on the links below to find out.

Spring Bloomers	Summer Bloomers	Autumn Bloomers

Listen to an audio tour of the Heirloom Garden and learn how its plants were used in early American medicine and folk traditions.

Click here if you are interested in learning about more
plants found in the Heirloom Garden.

Here are some of the Smithsonian Horticulturists' top plant picks. Can you find any of these favorites currently growing in the Heirloom Garden? Find out the next time you visit the National Museum of American History. Click on the links below to enlarge the images. The plants below are listed first by scientific name, then common name, and lastly, the year they were brought into cultivation.

	Calycanthus floridus, Common Sweetshrub: 1726		Clethra alnifolia, Summersweet: 1731
	Vitex agnus-castus, Chaste Tree: 1570		Exochorda racemosa, Pearl Bush: 1849

Want to get a closer look at the Heirloom Gardens? Click on any of the four areas of the interactive map to view a sampling of the heirloom plants on display.

Click on one of the four corners of the plan to view the heirloom plants on display.

Plan from Smithsonian's Smithsonian Gardens

For further plant information visit these websites:

• United States National Arboretum
  
• United States Department of Agriculture Plant Hardiness Zone Map
  
• United States Department of Agriculture Plants Database
  

• American Horticultural Society A – Z Encyclopedia of Garden Plants. American Horticultural Society. D. K. Publishing, Inc., 2004.
• Passalong Plants. Steve Bender and Felder Rushing. University of North Carolina Press, 1993.
• The Edible Rainbow Garden. Rosalind Creasy. Periplus Editions, 2000.
• Heirloom Flowers: Vintage Flowers for Modern Gardens. Tovah Martin. Fireside, 1999.
• Gardening with Heirloom Plants. David Stuart. Putnam Group, 1998.
• Seed Sowing and Saving: Step-by-Step Techniques for Collecting and Growing More than 100 Vegetables, Flower, and Herbs. Carole B. Turner. Storey Communications, Inc., 1998.
• Taylor's Guide to Heirloom Vegetables. Benjamin Watson. Houghton Mifflin Company, 1996.
• Heirloom Vegetable Gardening. William Woys Weaver. Henry Holt and Co., 1997.
• The Garden Seed Inventory. Kent Whealy. Seed Savers Exchange, 1999.
• Heirloom Flower Gardens: Rediscovering and Designing With Classic Ornamentals. Jo Ann Gardner. Chelsea Green Publishing, 2001.
• Restoring American Gardens: An Encyclopedia of Heirloom Ornamental Plants 1640-1940. Denise Wiles Adams. Timber Press, 2004.
• The Garden’s Guide to Life: Timeless Lessons Based on the Principles of Gardening. Criswell Freeman, Editor. Walnut Group, 1997.

*This is not meant to be a complete list of reference material related to heirloom gardens.
Plant images by Smithsonian's Smithsonian Gardens staff and interns.