Melania the green goddess: First Lady shares her unexpected love of GARDENING on day-trip with Japanese PM's wife after coming under fire for skipping out on official White House tour yesterday

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First Lady Melania Trump showed her love for the outdoors by choosing to leave her penthouse in Trump Tower and trekking to Delray, Florida for a museum and garden tour with the Japanese Prime Minister's wife.

It is Mrs Trump's first public appearance as first lady without her husband. 

All smiles, the First Lady joined the Prime Minister of Japan's wife, Akie Abe, in a tour of Morikami Museum and Japanese Garden in Delray Beach, Florida.

Mrs Trump also revealed she has a green thumb and wants to make sure the White House gardens continue to flourish.

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First Lady Melania Trump and Akie Abe, wife of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, feed Koi fish during a tour of Morikami Museum and Japanese Gardens

Mrs Trump said in a statement: 'Gardening teaches us the fundamentals in care and the evolution of living things' 

The women chatted and strolled through the beautiful Japanese Garden in Delray Beach, Florida

Mrs Trump spent time with Mrs Abe the day after she was criticized for not giving the Prime Minister of Japan's wife a tour of the White House, a tradition for the FLOTUS

Mrs Trump and Mrs Abe listen to a guide as they tour Morikami Museum and Japanese Gardens on Saturday morning

This was Melania Trump's first public solo appearance as First Lady of the United States. She has been living in Trump Tower

While the wives visited toured tour Morikami Museum and Japanese Gardens, President Trump and Prime Minister Abe played golf in Jupiter

Yesterday, Mrs Trump was harshly criticized for leaving the First Lady of Japan to visit D.C. while her husband met with President Trump. Mrs Abe visited Gallaudet University Friday and went to a National Cherry Blossom Festival committee meeting at the Japanese embassy.

Giving  an official White House tour and spending time with the spouse of foreign leaders is a typical job of FLOTUS.

In a statement, the White House said: 'The First Lady was very much looking forward to welcoming Mrs Abe to the White House upon her arrival in Washington; however, she was informed that Mrs Abe had previous commitments during her stay in DC.' 

However, Mrs Trump did greet the Prime Minister and First Lady at Andrews Air Force Base in Maryland before they all jetted off to Mar-a-Lago.

Mrs Trump expressed her love for gardening in a statement to CNN: 'Both our countries histories and cultures are steeped in the nurture and nature of gardening.'

'Having knowledge of different cultures and customs is a wonderful way to learn and to explore. Gardening teaches us the fundamentals in care and the evolution of living things, all while inspiring us to nurture our minds and to relax and strengthen our bodies.'

Park Administrator Bonnie White Lemay (right) gives Mrs Abe and Mrs Trump a tour of Morikami Museum and Japanese Gardens

First Lady Melania Trump and Prime Minister of Japan's wife are trailed by photographers as they spend the day at Morikami Museum

The first ladies feed Koi during their garden trip while their husbands played golf in Jupiter, Florida

The first lady met the Japanese Prime Minister and his wife at Andrews Air Force Base in Maryland yesterday 

In a statement, First Lady Melania Trump said: 'I hope that together Mrs. Abe and I can continue to inspire our youth to enjoy the beauty around them and to restore their minds in the peacefulness of their surroundings'

First Lady Melania Trump said in a statement she was looking forward to meeting Mrs Abe the previous day but was informed the Prime Minister's wife had meetings 

Today, Abe and Trump toured the Morikami Museum and Japanese Garden while their husbands played golf at President Trump's golf club in Jupiter.

Trump and Abe left Mar-a-Lago early Saturday morning and headed north to one of Trump's golf courses in Jupiter, Florida. Reporters weren't able to catch a glimpse of the pair as they played on the 285-acre property as reported by the Associated Press.

 But Trump later posted a photo of them giving each other a high-five on the golf course and tweeted, 'Having a great time hosting Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in the United States!'

The Trump National Golf Club website, in typical Trumpian language, claims the course 'features the finest revetted bunkers in the United States, incredible water hazards, including a magnificent island green, and one of the most picturesque landscapes, all of which make for a truly memorable round.'

Abe had joked at a joint press conference at the White House on Friday that he was looking forward to playing golf with Trump, even though he's not nearly as good with a club.  

First Lady Melania Trump, center, and Akie Abe, wife of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe listen as Park Administrator Bonnie White Lemay

Akie Abe spent time in D.C. yesterday without First Lady Melania Trump and visited Gallaudet University

First solo outing: Mrs Trump said she would have liked to meet up with the Japanese Prime Minister's wife yesterday but Mrs Abe had prior engagements 

After a busy day, the two couples got dressed up for dinner and posed for the cameras at Mar-a-Lago on Saturday evening

The dinner caps a day of golfing and tweeting for the president and prime minister while their wives got to know each other as well

Trump gives a thumbs up to the cameras before entering the hall for dinner while Abe seems slightly amused

The first lady smiles as she is ushered into the hall by the president while Abe tags along

While the president and prime minister golfed, Mrs Trump and Mrs Abe were also expected to have lunch together at Mar-a-Lago after touring the gardens. 

Stephanie Winston Wolkoff, senior adviser to the first lady said in a statement: 'The First Lady has a deep personal commitment to her role as caretaker and nurturer, beginning with her family.' 

'She believes there is a connection between a child's mind and places of calm and beauty to be used as a tool for us all.' 

'As a mother and as the First Lady of this country, Mrs. Trump is committed to the preservation and continuation of the White House Gardens, specifically the First Lady's Kitchen Garden and the Rose Garden.' 

Mrs Trump said in a statement: 'I hope that together Mrs. Abe and I can continue to inspire our youth to enjoy the beauty around them and to restore their minds in the peacefulness of their surroundings.' 

Later on Saturday evening, the two couples met again for dinner. They posed for photographs just before entering the luxurious hall at Mar-a-Lago for their meal. 

Praise: On Saturday morning the president took to Twitter to pay Shinzo Abe and his wife a polite complement after their meal in Florida 

Friday, President Donald Trump took a trip with his family and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and his wife Akie Abe. Donald was joined by Melania Trump, Ivanka Trump, Jared Kushner, and their kids

On their way: The Trumps and the Abes will spend the weekend at Mar-a-Lago, now being dubbed the Winter White House

Greeting: The President last saw the First Lady at Mar-a-Lago last weekend and greeted her with a kiss on the tarmac at Andrews

Family greeting: Melania Trump was on the ground at Andrews Air Force Base as her husband arrived with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and his wife Akie Abe

Family getaway! Jared Kushner helps his son Joseph down the stairs of Air Force One while Ivanka carries baby Theodore and holds the hand of her eldest child Arabella

Family time: Ivanka Trump traveled on Air Force One with her husband Jared Kushner and their three young children, and left carrying youngest son Theodore in her arms

The Trumps boarded Air Force One Friday evening with the Japanese Prime Minister and his wife. They were joined by Trump's Senior Advisor Jared Kushner, Ivanka Trump and their children.

Trump and Abe plan to play golf in Palm Beach at Trump's Mar-A-Lago property - a 'personal gift' from the president to his foreign companion. 

That evening, President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump welcomed the Japanese prime minister and his wife to his ‘winter White House’ in Mar-a-Lago after jetting off for a weekend of ‘golf diplomacy’. 

They dined at the estate with Patriots owner Robert Kraft. The group enjoyed a lively evening as the President revelled in his 'winner’s' circle. Trump hopes to improve the United States’ relationship with Japan. 

This evening, the Trumps and Abes are expected to attend the lavish 70th birthday party of Blackstone equity firm CEO Stephen Schwarzman.

 A source involved in the planning of the shindig exclusively tells Dailymail.com that Schwarzman, a billionaire 11 times over, is spending upward of $20 million on the weekend-long affair for 400 of the richest people in America.

The party will have elements both inside and outside of Blackstone Group CEO Schwarzman's 15,000-square-foot house named Four Winds. The estate stretches from the Atlantic Ocean's edge across the island of Palm Beach to the Intracoastal Waterways. 

First Lady Melania Trump joined the group after spending the week in New York City and joining her husband this morning

At a dinner on Friday evening at the luxurious resort, the Donald was joined by Patriots owner Robert Kraft (left) , Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe (third from left) and his wife Akie (second from right), and of course, the First Lady

President Trump's vacation at his 'winter White House' in Mar-a-Lago, Florida has continued to welcome a range of exciting guests throughout the weekend