USDA Headquarters, Washington, D.C. People’s Garden and USDA Farmers Market

The garden located on the corner of Jefferson Drive and 12th Street, S.W. educates the public about sustainable gardening practices. The garden showcases food grown in containers for small urban spaces, raised beds for community plots, and fruit trees.

VegU

Learn about our VegU cooking classes.

Honeybees, Pollinators, and Habitat

Learn more about the benefits of honeybees – we have hives on the rooftop of the USDA Whitten building!

Three of every four bites of food is dependent on the services of pollinators. Learn more about how to help pollinators, including bees, butterflies, bats, and more.

What’s growing?

The garden features cool and warm season crops, culinary and medicinal herbs and pollinator friendly plants.

In early spring, cool weather crops like peas, kale, collards, radishes, cilantro, parsley, carrots, lettuces, beets, chard and spinach are planted.

In late spring and summer, other crops such as beans, tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, squash, and pumpkins are grown.

In mid-fall, cover crops are planted, including grasses, legumes (peas or beans) or small grains grown between regular crops.

We also have fruit trees.

Conservation

The tool shed has a green roof and was built from wood repurposed from fallen urban trees in the city. Learn more about using reclaimed materials in this blog.

A rain barrel next to the shed collects rainwater that would otherwise pour from the roof and rush off to storm drains and streams. The water collected is a cost-free way to irrigate the garden.

Our composting area helps us repurpose garden waste.

Cover crops are used to improve soil fertility, provide food and cover for wildlife, control water and wind erosion, suppress weeds and retain moisture through winter.

The USDA’s Farmers Market

Visit the USDA Farmers Market on Fridays, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. (May through October) to sample local produce and prepared foods.

 

 

 

VegU is a popular 10-minute weekly class that teaches how to grow, pick, prepare, and store different fruits and vegetables. Get VegUcated!

 

 

 

What’s in Season?

Check out the schedule for available produce at the market.

Find your local Farmers Market

Farmers markets contribute to fair, distributed, and resilient local and regional food systems. More than 8,000 farmers markets across the country provide local communities with access to fresh, healthy foods while bringing together neighbors and fostering direct relationships between farmers and consumers. Find other local farmers markets near you at usdalocalfoodportal.com.

Learn more about the USDA Farmers Market.