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With good stain and cautiously selected plants , a garden can thrive anywhere , even on the Rock . Alcatraz Island in San Francisco Bay has a delicious surprise in store for visitant who expect to see nothing but abandoned prison house cellular telephone and a stark , stark landscape . They will also get to feel the Rock ’s softer side — flourishing garden , tide pools , shuttle colonies , and stunning views of the bay tree . Thanks to a decade - long partnership of the Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy , Garden Conservancy , and National Park Service , the historic Gardens of Alcatraz have been fully repair and are now live with fragrant roses , Libyan Islamic Group Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree , wildflower , and colorful succulents .
The gardens at Alcatraz need rugged plants that could last with trivial H2O or charge . Many of the species were import from other Mediterranean climates and flourished despite 40 years of neglect after the prison house close . Today , volunteer crew from the bay area play with Garden Conservancy staff to help plant and maintain the restored gardens . Photo by : Elizabeth Byers .
“ Our hope is that the stunner and complex nature of these garden will become better known , ” says Greg Moore , Chief Executive and CEO of the Parks Conservancy . “ The Alcatraz Gardens project is a tribute to those who tended the gardens in the past , as well as to those who work on to continue and incline them today . ”
Alcatraz was first inhabited in the mid-1800s , when it was used as an army fortress and then transitioned into a military prison in 1861 . In an effort to cultivate the innocent island , the military import soil from nearby Angel Island and the Presidio , and as early as 1865 , army officer began planting straight-laced - fashion garden . In the 1920s , the armed forces and the California Spring Blossom and Wildflower Association lead up an island - wide beautification project and prisoners planted hundreds of tree and shrub and many pound of flower seminal fluid . In 1933 , when the Federal Bureau of Prisons took ascendence of Alcatraz , they were surprised to find the island adorned by hillside terrace , a roseate garden , and a nursery . Under the direction of California horticulturists , yard bird were permitted to continue working the gardens , and they eventually transmute the island ’s westerly slope .
The officers ’ row gardens furnish cut flowers for the guard live on Alcatraz . In this photograph , Calendula , Centranthus , and whiskered iris bring cheer to the Rock . Photo by : Shelagh Fritz .
After the prison house closed in 1963 , the garden were abandoned for 40 years and the landscape deteriorated . In 2003 , the Garden Conservancy , the National Park Service , and the Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy join forces to restore the garden to their original glory . The challenging project included removing 40 year of gigantism and decay , gathering historic documentation , and developing an ambitious military volunteer garden programme . More than 200 species of decorative plants live the farsighted period of neglect and the ambitious growing environment . Historic plantings that were lose have been replaced by new low - maintenance plants with water needs more suitable to the coarse climate conditions .
Many succulent , such as theAeoniumseen here , have been able to fly high despite the intriguing surroundings . More than 200 metal money of ornamental plants survive the harsh growing conditions . Photo by : Elizabeth Byers .
“ Vintage images and diachronic records of the Alcatraz gardens from the mid-1800s through 1963 help maneuver our continuing renovation crusade , ” says Frank Dean , general superintendent of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area . “ The Gardens of Alcatraz are a marvellous and unexpected surprise for the 1.4 million annual visitors to the island . ”
The Prisoner Gardens , on the west side of Alcatraz , were restored in 2009 . The recreated birdbath is surrounded bySalvia , Pelargonium , Osteospermum , Erysimum‘Bowles Mauve ' , andTropaeolum . Photo by : Shelagh Fritz .
The Gardens of Alcatraz are open to the public year - orotund , but the good prison term for viewing is from January to September , especially during the spring . Seven key gardens have been reestablish , including the Main Road Landscape , Rose Terrace , Officers ’ Row Gardens , Warden ’s Garden , Prisoner Gardens , Cellhouse gradient , and West Lawn and Terraces . Docent - led tours are available on Fridays and Sundays . For more info and to take a practical turn , visitthe Gardens of Alcatraz .
The gardens tended by the prisoners of Alcatraz became a refuge from the tensions in the cellular phone sign . A view of San Francisco can be envision across the bay . Photo by : Shelagh Fritz .
In the morning light , the Officers ’ Row Gardens are awash in soft pastel , including whiteCentranthus , royal whiskered iris , pinkNicotiana , and roses . Across San Francisco Bay is a view of Angel Island . Photo by : Shelagh Fritz .
Rose Terrace and Greenhouse Complete with a fresh greenhouse , propagation tables , and composting space , the rosaceous patio is once again functioning as the nitty-gritty of garden activities at Alcatraz . Photo by : Elizabeth Byers .
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