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United States National Arboretum
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<p>The United States National Arboretum is an <a href="/facts/Arboretum/2f884zQC">arboretum</a> in northeast <a href="/facts/Washington,_D.C./enXPK156">Washington, D.C.</a>, operated by the <a href="/facts/United_States_Department_of_Agriculture/3PK2rx7C">United States Department of Agriculture</a>'s <a href="/facts/Agricultural_Research_Service/s4FaWDuu">Agricultural Research Service</a>. It was established in 1927 by an <a href="/facts/Act_of_Congress/CE4cpsgt">act of Congress</a> after a campaign by USDA Chief Botanist <a href="/facts/Frederick_Vernon_Coville/D42gQ4l3">Frederick Vernon Coville</a>. </p><p>It is 446 acres (1.80 km2) in size and is located 2.2 miles (3.5 km) northeast of the <a href="/facts/United_States_Capitol/UFAR0zx8">Capitol</a> building, with entrances on <a href="/facts/New_York_Avenue_(Washington,_D.C.)/jWwKqLX5">New York Avenue, NE</a> and R Street, NE. The campus's gardens, collections, and features are connected by roadways that are 9.5 miles (15.3 km) long in total. In addition to the main campus in Washington, D.C., there are research locations at the <a href="/facts/Henry_A._Wallace_Beltsville_Agricultural_Research_Center/c3j9fpox">Henry A. Wallace Beltsville Agricultural Research Center</a> in <a href="/facts/Beltsville,_Maryland/zRLJhQV8">Beltsville, Maryland</a> and in <a href="/facts/McMinnville,_Tennessee/F6HraeY8">McMinville, Tennessee</a>. </p><p>The Arboretum functions as a major center of <a href="/facts/Botany/PaIRoxnb">botanical</a> research conducted by the USDA, including applied research on trees, shrubs, turf, and the development of new ornamental plants. In addition to a library and a historical collection (archive), the institution also has an extensive <a href="/facts/Herbarium/DAemtxgf">herbarium</a> of over 800,000 specimens documenting wild and cultivated plant diversity. </p>