Tulsa Municipal Rose Garden

Constructed by the WPA using hand labor and teams of horses and a part of Woodward Park and the Tulsa Garden Center, the Municipal Rose Garden was inaugurated in 1934 and is a continuing project of Tulsa Parks and the Tulsa Garden Club. The first roses for the garden were planted in 1935. Landscape architect Burton Fox designed the sloping 4 1/2 acre garden in Italian Renaissance style with a series of five terraces, rising up a gentle slope almost 900 feet. Reflecting pools with aquatic plants are featured on all Terraces; junipers are hand-sheared into formal, conical shapes within the garden; the area is flanked on the south and east by a wide variety of trees. Roses bloom from May until the first frost, usually in November. Peak bloom periods are mid-June and again in mid-October. More flowers can be seen in the spring; however, the color and duration of the blooms last longer in the fall. There are approximately 3,000 rose plants of more than 200 varieties in the garden including: floribundas, hybrid teas, grandifloras, miniatures, climbers, shrub and other species. The Tulsa Garden Club purchases replacement roses each year as a club project for the perpetuation of the garden. Identification markers for the roses are in each bed throughout the garden. Guided tours and welcome reception for groups available by reservation.