Set on twenty-five acres adjacent to Rock Creek Park, Hillwood’s gardens feature a diverse and fascinating array of trees, shrubs and herbaceous plants, offering something to see in every season. 

Plants to note in the greenhouse:

• Orchid month is right around the corner and the greenhouses are gearing up. Many of the cymbidiums are already in flower. Native to tropical and subtropical Asia and Australia, their long-lasting, waxy flowers are often used in arrangements a for corsages. One particularly nice specimen in the collection is Cymbidium Hazel Fay ‘Shocking’ with lovely orange petals and sepals that are striped with raspberry and outlined in yellow.
• There are also quite a few dendrobium orchids coming into bloom. One not to be missed is Dendrobium Merlin, a nobile-type hybrid just full of flowers inside the main entrance. The dark patch on the lip really grabs attention and contrasts well with the white and magenta petals and sepals. Dendrobiums are often good candidates to have growing directly on bark or wood. Many of our nobile-types are grown in hanging baskets as a nice way to appreciate their often pendulous habit.  
• There is a nice variety of slipper orchids blooming now too. A plant to note is a paphiopedilum hybrid of Winston Churchill (Paph. Winston Churchill indomitable x Paph. Jaeger 'Bold Spots'). It has a lovely large, beefy flower decorated with spots. Slipper orchids get their common name from the flower’s lip shape which resembles a slipper. Several of our paphiopedilum just won awards at the National Capital Orchid Society’s Paphiopedilum Forum. 

Highlights in the garden:

• Snowdrops (Galanthus spp.) are blooming throughout the gardens. One of the earliest blooming bulbs, it is the forerunner to tens of thousands more planted throughout the campus. Snowdrops grow particularly well under deciduous trees, receiving full sun in late winter and then later part shade as the leaves of the trees develop. Such is the setting along the woodland path where a nice clump has developed. Time waits for no one so see them while you can.
• With the extended snow cover on the ground, the hellebores are a bit behind schedule compared to the last few years but some are open now. We anticipate quite a flurry of color once warmer temperatures appear. An attractive mix (Helleborus x hybridus ‘Pine Knot Best Strain’) is found in the western Lunar Lawn bed. The flowers come in white, cream, pink, red and everything in-between. ‘Pine Knot Best Strain’ was developed in Clarksville, Virginia.
• The witch hazel (Hamamelis × intermedia 'Jalena') between the Adirondack Building and Dacha is just glowing. This wide, slow-growing deciduous shrub is known for its attractive copper look when in bloom. Looking closer at the flowers, the crinkled strap-like petals start as red at the center and change color until they become yellow at the tips. Sometimes the flowers are delightfully fragrant. In the DC area, witch hazels enjoy part shade and rich organic soils.