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Lake Merritt Garden Center
Categories: Education Specialty Schools Shopping Home & Garden Nurseries & Gardening Specialty Schools, Nurseries & Gardening [Edit]
666 Bellevue Ave(between Grand Ave & Perkins St)
Oakland, CA 94610
(510) 238-6877
- Price Range:
-
$
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- No
- Parking:
- Street
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- Yes
$250 for $400 Certificate
Ruby C. said: "My boyfriend and I needed a birdbath or fountain to put in the front lawn because part of the pipe had awful placement, right in the middle of the…" read more »
11 reviews for Lake Merritt Garden Center
11 reviews in English
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Review from Hannah A.
9/12/2011
Lake Merritt is something of an urban miracle. It's a salt water lake and I've recently learned, a wildlife sanctuary.
Birds can be quite obnoxious ( pigeons in particular) but after walking the entire distance of the lake I discovered that there are several different species of birds living there . Beautiful birds residing in the middle of the city, what a gift! It's such a unique surprise considering that I spend 40 hours a week in close proximity.
For random facts about Lake Merritt as well random taxidermy check out the Nature Center located in between the large dome-like structure (used for birds in the nesting period) and Fairyland.
The Garden was the highlight of my morning stroll.
The herb portion of it was very therapeutic . Rosemary, White Sage and Oregano were among my favorite plants. At one point the aroma of Oregano was so strong , my friend and I fell into a discussion about the bay's best place to eat pizza.
There were exotic plants , hanging tree flowers and bright colors that made me regret not re-charging my camera battery. (Boo!)
Five Stars go to the Bonsai Garden. What an experience! The Japanese have truly mastered the art of the miniature. Wow! It must take genuine dedication to preserve the authenticity of these tiny trees. The collection of Bonsai's here are truly breath taking. The man tending the Garden was friendly and informative. He seemed to know everything there is to know about Bonsai's and ranted like a zealot. I learned alot from listening to him. I was so in awestruck that a misplaced garden variety pot of grass actually confused me. " What kind of tree is this?" hahaha..
It's hard to believe that only blocks away, it's crack central.
This is a walk that I will certainly take again except next time I won't wear sandals, there are bird droppings everywhere!Listed in: A WEEKEND WITH HANNAH
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Review from Tito Y.
Emeryville, CA
Bonzai Trees are inside this Garden Center.
The Italian Piazza is inside this Garden Center.
Japanese Garden is inside this Garden Center
Palm Trees are inside this Garden Center
Facilities are inside this Garden Center.
This is a lovely place..makes me happy that a City like Oakland can keep places like this a rich and wonderful experience. I am sending all my tourist friends directly here.. no questions asked. -
Review from Nerd A.
Oakland, CA
2/2/2009
I will admit that I have spent very little time in the East Bay even though I've lived in the bay area for 11 years of my life. The images that Oakland conjures up in my mind are ones of poverty and violence and I am happy to say now that I was wrong to have those images.
I've recently had the pleasure of spending time in the Lake Merritt area and I have been totally impressed by all the wonderful shops and activities the area has to offer.
I spent Saturday morning at the farmer's market and was amazed at all the great produce and goods for sale but even more than that was the sense of community in the area.
What really sealed the deal was walking around the lake on Sunday and stumbling upon the Lake Merritt Garden Center. What is so nice is that there are a variety of different kinds of gardens located next to each other.
Community Garden: This is a great little garden that has a variety of different kinds of herbs that give off a wonderful aroma. There is also a section that is designed for children so you can show them about how vegetables get from the ground to their stomachs.
Bonsai Garden: A beautiful collection on Bonsai trees including one that was given to a former President in the 19th century! I was greeted by a really sweet volunteer who gave me a guide to all of different trees in the collection which made it even more fun to look at these amazing miniature works of art.
Japanese Rock Garden: A lovely little rock garden complete with a pond but no Koi.
The Exhibition Center: While it certainly wasn't the nicest space I've been to I think it would serve as a quality meeting space and would be ideal for hosting parties or maybe even a wedding. While I was there they had a Bonsai event going on with quite a few spectacular trees to admire.
So Lake Merritt you have made this San Francisco boy have a whole new idea of what Oakland is really like and I thank you for opening my eyes! -
Review from Jenn P.
Santa Clara, CA
3/25/2009
Strolling through the garden area, you'll come across different gardens and types of plants. There is a little Japanese style garden with a mini waterfall flowing into a pond. I was kind of disappointed there were no koi in the pond but my feelings of disappointment could come from the fact there are larger, better maintained Japanese gardens in the South Bay. (Not to mention, I've seen private residences with bigger gardens than this one).
The is a dry area for cacti and succulents as well as a tropical area with palm and pineapple trees. I doubt it bears fruit but it's not always you see a pineapple tree up close in CA.
Upon entering the Bonsai Garden, you're handed a guide identifying the plants in the collection; there's even a plant from the Lincoln days. A few volunteers were bonsai-ing when we visited and they were friendly, answering our questions. Be sure to sign the guest book and check out the bulletin board for upcoming Bay Area bonsai events.
Also in the garden center is a Community Garden with a random mix of herbs and vegetable plants. The Senses Garden is in between the Bonsai and Community Gardens and is dedicated primarily to herbs. We plucked small pieces of the different herbs and smelled them to compare. It was nice to see the herbs you consume in their natural form.
I came here for the orchid show and sale and discovered there was more to the area than just an old timey reception hall. It's sad to see that some parts of the garden center are clearly neglected but it was still a pleasant surprise and allowed us to see a different side of Oakland.
Note: $3/car Lake Merritt parking fee on weekends (Fri-Sun). -
Review from Kalyani Y.
Oakland, CA
5/24/2007
Like most of my reviews, I'm going to start this one with a little background history which of course comes from my own life. For two months I went to a little-known private Islamic school called Alhambra that was housed in the Garden Center's basement. Aside from the fact that I was one of the only non-islamic students attending, I had a relatively good time there (why I went there in the first place is a story I don't think I even have all the facts for). We often visited the Japanese garden with it's koi pond and one particularly interesting bonsai (among many) that was supposedly gifted to President Lincoln from Japanese ambassadors.
There are plenty of interesting events being held upstairs in the Garden Center's clean, air conditioned rental rooms, like annual orchid shows to attend and plenty of private parties to crash. Since my stint at Alhambra, I've seen the Center's surrounding lawns being used for the Ethiopian new year festival, an American national hackey sack competition, and the more mundane daily sport of seniors' lawn bowling. The events held here rarely have anything to do with each other, or even with gardening, but they're always interesting. -
Review from Hannah D.
Concord, CA
7/5/2009
There is no better cure for the cubicle blues than a stroll in this garden.
I work about a 5 minute walk from this place, and love to spend my lunch hour here eating, reading, or just enjoying being outside. It's quiet, pleasant, and local.
On days when I'm having a hard time observing my "you must leave the building at least once" rule, I think about the garden and promptly run down the stairs.
If you don't want to sit on one of the many benches, bring a blanket and lay on the grass. -
Review from Diana G.
Oakland, CA
3/9/2010
I got maried in the Japanese Garden in the Lake Merrit Garden Center. Oakland Parks and Rec has great rentals for indoor/outdoor events. It was a lovely afternoon in October and we were married int he garden and then had the reception in the adjacent room. We chose this location becasue my husband and I love the batonical gardens at Lake Merrit - one of Oakland's hidden treasures.
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Review from raye t.
San Francisco, CA
7/24/2010
quite a nice series of gardens with a great selection. the palm garden is worth the entire trip (from san francisco at least) all by itself. lots of really good-looking trees and healthy, thriving plants. honey bees just love the place! the bonsai garden is also unique and one of their specimens is an estimated 400+ years old!
what sucks is that hardly any of the plants are labeled so you dont know what youre looking at 90% of the time. also, they feed the feral cats in the area so while youre walking around youll find dishes of cat food with flies buzzing all over it. i know some people feed feral cats out of the goodness of their hearts, but it only increases the feral cat population which in turn, increases a lot of other problems. the REAL solution would be to trap them or call someone who will and then bring them to a shelter to get adopted out and fixed (which i will mention to them the next time i am there).... but anyhow........
i will probably visit again sometime this week, because the pros definitely outweight the cons. -
Review from Leanne L.
Oakland, CA
5/1/2011
I stop by briefly here the other day with a friend who's in town visiting. It's such a great park/garden situated in the middle of Oakland. It's serene and lush and super relaxing. I will definitely come back for a more extended visit to explore this area.
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Review from green k.
Oakland, CA
2/20/2009
cute link: http://gardensatlakeme...
i grew up 1 mile from this place and never stepped foot in it. about a year and a half ago i discovered it- it's an adorable little refuge from the messy urban-ness that makes oakland, and lake merritt, what they are. i love oakland, i love the noise, i love the dirt and grit and human poop, but sometimes i want to take pictures of something else. and smell something else. this place is great. and it's free. you can't bring your dog, which if you've noticed in my "best places to shoot" reviews, means it brings it down one notch. also, it's small, for a botanical garden.
it smells good, though- the scent garden is smell-able almost from the second you enter, and it's quiet. i took my grandparents there, and they loved to sit on the bench and watch two ducks playing in the tiny pond. much more manageable than in the big lake with lots of other... stuff going on. there are all kinds of flowers and plants to look at and shoot, and it's easy to get to, easy to park at, and generally a good spot for an easy outing, if you're in oakland. -
Review from Donald C.
Oakland, CA
3/16/2010
Also known as the Gardens at Lake Merritt, this is a hidden jewel in th heart of Oakland!
