Herb Day, Courtesy: U.S. Botanic Garden

Herbs in small measures provide kitchen, bath and garden pleasures

U.S. Botanic Garden Hosts Sixth Annual Herb Day Celebration on Saturday, May 7

Want simple, convenient elegance in your life without making much of an effort? Add some herbs! Herbs elevate ordinary meals to extraordinary, make baths more relaxing and create fragrant gardens. They can easily be grown in containers or in a garden and be used for culinary enjoyment, health, beauty and more. Learn about the herbs that will enrich your life at the sixth annual Herb Day celebration at the U.S. Botanic Garden Conservatory on Saturday, May 7 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Throughout the day, enjoy demonstrations, activities, discussions and more from U.S. Botanic Garden and Herb Society of America experts. Participants can create their own herbal culinary blends, a lavender eye pillow and herbal lotion. See displays of herbs and garden vegetables, learn how to create your own herb container and sample the goodness of Mediterranean herbs at a cooking demo.

Featured discussions:

The Garden of Essential Flavor and Fragrance, 10:30 to 11:15 a.m.

Holly Shimizu, executive director, U.S. Botanic Garden

Holly will cover the values of the best, must-grow herbs and other plants for enhancing your food, flavor and fragrance experience. Learn which herbs thrive in the Mid-Atlantic area and make for abundant harvests and healthful, flavorful and fragrant pleasures in your garden.

The Herbalist’s Garden, 11:30 a.m. to 12:15 p.m.

John Forti, historic gardens and landscapes curator, Strawbery Banke Museum, Portsmouth, New Hampshire

John brings history to life through heirloom herbs. Historic garden design and new perspectives on growing and using herbs will inspire gardeners, cooks and herbalists of the 21st century to cultivate herbs to promote wellness and add beauty to the landscape.

Mediterranean Herbs and Their Habitat, 1:30 to 2:30 p.m.

Susan Belsinger, culinary educator, food writer and photographer

Take a tour with Susan across the Greek island of Syros to view the native terrain and habitat for the indigenous herbs of the Mediterranean region. Seeing how these plants tenaciously hang onto the rocky cliffs in scorching heat with little rain will allow a better understanding of what these herbs need to grow in our gardens. Learn more about familiar herbs and meet a few new ones.

The U.S. Botanic Garden Conservatory is open to the public, free of charge, every day of the year from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. The Conservatory is located at 100 Maryland Avenue SW, on the west side of the U.S. Capitol. Visitors are encouraged to take Metrobus and Metrorail. Further information is available by visiting www.usbg.gov or calling (202) 225-8333.