Hello Teachers! We are delighted that you will be visiting San Francisco Botanical Garden with your students! The Garden is FREE to all organized school groups.

 

Please register in advance to let us know of your plans.

 

Thank you for reviewing expectations for Garden behavior with chaperones and students before your visit. To protect sensitive Garden collections, we ask that groups do not pick anything from a living plant and do not collect plant material to bring back to the classroom.

  

Garden Entrances

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Groups are welcome to enter through either of the two Garden entrances. The Main Gate is located near Ninth Avenue, just inside the Park, and the Friend (North) Gate is located on Martin Luther King Jr. Drive, just steps from the Japanese Tea Garden, de Young Museum, and California Academy of Sciences. Please note, the Friend (North) Gate opens at 9am. Use the Main Gate if you are planning to arrive early.

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Getting Here

 

​Public Transportation

The N Judah Muni train stops at 9th Avenue and Irving Street. The #7 Haight/Noriega and the #44 O'Shaughnessy bus lines stop at 9th Avenue and Lincoln Way.

 

More information on transportation and parking can be viewed here: sfbg.org/visit

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Lunches

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Classes are welcome to eat snack/lunch at the Garden. We do not have storage facilities for school lunches, so please plan accordingly. We recommend the Great Meadow for lunch, due to proximity to restrooms and trash and recycle cans. You may also wish to eat lunch at one of the recreation fields across from the Garden. No balls or frisbees are permitted in the Garden.

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Areas of Interest

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With over 55 acres of plants, you will be sure to find something exciting during your visit! To learn more about our plant collections you can view sfbg.org/plant-collections. There are Garden maps available at the entrance kiosks. Please contact us at (415) 661-1316 x 407 if you would like individualized suggestions on areas of interest based on your area of study or grade.

 

Teachers Resources

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For elementary students we recommend the Nature Explorers Booklet. Worksheets on plant adaptations and habitats are available for older students. Preschool teachers can check out our Preschool Explorer Kits for day use.

 

Also, don't forget to visit the Helen Crocker Russell Library of Horticulture to view the extensive children's collection. San Francisco teachers and San Francisco Botanical Garden Society members may apply for a library card to check out books from the children’s collection. The children's collection includes over 2,000 volumes for children of various ages and includes books in many languages. The library also features a teachers' resource collection devoted to children's nature education as well as reading lists and suggested on-line resources are featured on the website.