It’s Mother’s Day! Treat your favorite mom to a wonderful day amongst the roses and perhaps bring a picnic.

Rose Gardens of the Bay Area

Here’s a list of free Rose Gardens all over the Bay Area:

But please check the schedules before you head out. Some rose gardens are closed for private events

San Jose / South Bay

• San Jose’s Municipal Rose Garden – Rolling green lawns and colorful showy blooms highlight the San José Municipal Rose Garden. In fact, hardly a day passes when some species is not in full bloom, with more than 3,500 plantings and 189 varieties featured. San José’s 5.5 acre Municipal Rose Garden – a one-time prune orchard – is today one of the most attractive of its kind in the world, drawing thousands of visitors each year. The garden is exclusively devoted to shrubs of the rose family and features over 4,000 rose shrubs with 189 varieties represented. Hybrid–teas comprise 75% of the plantings. These shrubs are characterized by a single high centered bloom per stem. Open 8am to 1 hour after sunset. Includes picnic areas.
• San Jose Heritage Rose Garden – A world class collection of 3,000 plants of 2,800 varieties of heritage, modern and miniature roses, initially planted by more than 750 volunteers back in 1995.
• Mission Rose Gardens –  Santa Clara University  – Presently, the Mission Rose Gardens and Cemetery are beautiful, serene places on the Santa Clara University campus. Additionally, the Adobe Lodge and Adobe Wall in the rose gardens are original structures from the mission period. They are the oldest structures on campus and still remain, yet are glorified by people looking beyond the past history and just at the current beauty.

East Bay

• Morcom Rose Garden – Oakland –  The Morcom Rose Gardenhas thousands of exotic roses that are in bloom from Mother’s Day in May through October 31st.The Amphitheatre of Roses in the garden is an enchanting location for weddings, renewals, memorial celebrations and ceremonies. Visitors will see winding walkways, a reflecting pool, graceful stairways and fountain cascades.The Garden is wheelchair accessible. The garden may be reserved after Mother’s Day in May through October 31. Reservations are booked on a first come first serve basis.
• Berkeley Rose Garden – Berkeley’s Historic Rose Garden contains 1,500 rose bushes and 250 varieties of roses, along with breathtaking views of the San Francisco Bay and the Golden Gate Bridge. The terraced amphitheater and 220-foot-long redwood pergola were suggested by architect Bernard Maybeck. Open 6am to 10pm. Includes picnic area, restroom and is wheelchair accessible. 1201 Euclid Avenue, Berkeley, CA
• The Crowden Rose Garden – Walnut Creek – The rose garden is the centerpiece of the 6.5 acre Gardens at Heather Farm with a prized collection features more than 1,000 roses and 150 cultivars. Free. Open 7 days a week; sunrise to sunset.

San Francisco

• Golden Gate Park Rose Garden – San Francisco – Located off JFK drive and 14th Avenue (right behind the de Young), the rose garden hosts a unique variety of roses bloom as the public is enlightened by the beauty, fragrance, and sight of hybrid tea roses and various miniatures. There are 60 beds of roses stretch all the way to Fulton Street.

Peninsula

• Marion Panaretos Rose Garden – San Mateo – Located in Central Park – The original rose garden, which remains today, is located within the eight formal beds surrounded by boxwood hedges, to the south of the gazebo. The original rose garden, which remains today, is located within the eight formal beds surrounded by boxwood hedges, to the south of the gazebo