San Francisco’s best weather is here. Fog-weary citizens looking for fun under the warm Indian summer sun need look no farther than San Francisco Botanical Garden. October is the best month to take in a vibrant and unusual last hurrah of color as the Garden’s Cloud Forest collections comes into flower and many other late bloomers make a final summery splash too.

Visitors can catch some of the Garden’s many unusual late bloomers like the brilliant California fuchsia with shocking orange-red flowers contrasted against dusty gray-green leaves. And an October visit to the Garden’s Cloud Forest collections is a chance to discover the vivid beauty of the misty, high elevation forests of Mesoamerica and the Andes. With the Bay Area’s famous fog, San Francisco Botanical Garden is one of the only botanical gardens in the world where cloud forest plants thrive outdoors, and fall is the best time to see the Garden’s enchanting collections in bloom. Amidst the deep green canopy, delicate and unusual fuchsias dangle gracefully overhead, towering tree daisies hum with the buzzing of bees and brilliant salvias add bursts of color to the forest floor. 

A free cloud forest plant map, highlighting key species and their location within the Garden, is available to the public. In addition, the Garden offers free cloud forest docent tours every Saturday, October 7 through December 30 at 2pm.

WHAT:                      
The Cloud Forest and Other Late Bloomers at San Francisco Botanical Garden – the fall flowering of the Garden’s Cloud Forest collections and other stunning, late blooming plants

WHEN:                      
Sept 20-Oct 31, 2017; open every day

TIME:                        
7:30 AM - 6 PM through September
7:30 AM - 5 PM October – early November

WHERE:                   
San Francisco Botanical Garden, Golden Gate Park, San Francisco

TICKETS:                 
San Francisco Residents: FREE with proof of residency
Non-residents: $8 general, $6 youth 12-17 & seniors; $2 children 5-11; children 4 and under FREE; families of 2 adults and one or more child pay just $18
The Garden is free daily 7:30-9am and all day on second Tuesdays of the month

INFORMATION:     
San Francisco Botanical Garden, (415) 661-1316

FOR FAMILIES
Children's Story Time in the Library
Cloud Forests & Jungles: Sundays, October 1 and 15
Special Halloween Story Time: Sunday, October 29 (costumes encouraged!)
10:30–11:30am
FREE (admission required for Garden walks following story readings)

Enjoy special stories in the Library, followed by a guided walk through the Garden, connecting that morning's story to living plants. For families with children ages 4-8.

Bean Sprouts Family Days
Saturdays, now through October 28, 1-4pm
Free with regular admission

Journey out to the Children's Garden to enjoy hands-on outdoor fun! Create colorful crafts with flowers, help weed and water the garden, read a book or play a nature game with Garden staff and teen interns. For families with children ages 3-10.

Our final month this year of Bean Sprouts Family Days will feature special cloud forest activities, with a new one each week. Follow our story trail to learn about a tiny cloud forest creature, create a pop-up cloud forest, explore scented salvias, passion fruit vines, and other cloud forest plants, and take home cuttings to grow yourself!