TikTok Tuesday: Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens

@wdcgardener

A visit to Kenilworth Aquatic Gardrns in Washington, DC. It is a national park property and is free and open to the public. ##gardendc ##publicgarden

♬ original sound - Kathy Jentz

By Molly Cuddy

This past week, we visited Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens, which is a national park located in northeast Washington, DC. It was a super quick and easy drive from my apartment in College Park, because it’s so close to the Maryland border. The garden spans several acres along the Anacostia River. It’s awesome that DC has that much public green space for gorgeous, spacious gardens.

Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens is filled with lotus and waterlilies as well as lots of wildlife. The best time for spotting birds is early in the morning. 

Entry is free to the gardens and it is open 8am-4pm daily (except Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year's Day). The U.S. National Arboretum is nearby (literally just across the river), so you could easily check out both in one day.

My TikTok video linked here shows a preview of what the garden looks like in mid-July. The video doesn’t even do all of it justice, so be sure to go to the aquatic gardens when you can; it’s a perfect summer day activity. 

About the Author

Molly Cuddy is a journalism major at the University of Maryland, College Park, and an intern this summer with Washington Gardener. She is also a campus tour guide and will be a teaching assistant for a professional writing class next semester.