DOWNTOWN: Log Cabin Visitor's Center
In the heart of our city, at 4th Avenue & "F" Street,  the Log Cabin Visitor's Center is surrounded by bright annual flowers provided by the Municipality of Anchorage.  Each year, the Municipality features a special theme.  Information on the current 'theme' is widely available, and adds to the enjoyment.  A flier, available in the Visitor's Center, lists the varieties planted.  The flier also describes the Municipality's plantings in other locations around the city.  Don't overlook the beautiful hanging baskets that adorn the light poles on that section of 4th Avenue during the summer months.  They are always quite spectacular.

TOWN SQUARE:
The Town Square is located next to the Performing Arts Center @ 6th & "F" Street.  It features wide-paved walkways perfect for an evening stroll amongst some of the city's finest flowers.  It is fun to see people from all over the world capturing the "dinner plate" dahlias on video tape and hearing their foreign language commentary.  The plantings there may be enjoyed at any time of the day, and the central location makes the Town Square a favorite for residents and tourists alike.  The meandering pathways and benches are always inviting.

ANCHORAGE MUSEUM OF HISTORY AND ART:
The flower beds at the museum are always worth investigating.  Creative color contrasts and plant combinations (like flashy purple Jolly Joker pansies jumping up from a fragrant bed of sweet alyssum) may be examined at leisure.

ALASKA BOTANICAL GARDEN
Anchorage's premier floral treasure is the Alaska Botanical Garden.  Located near the Benny Benson School at Tudor Road and Campbell Airstip Road, this is the newest public botanical garden in Southcentral Alaska.  The gardens include wildflowers, perennials, annuals and herbs.  Gravel and wood chip trails lead through the native spruce and birch forest to planted garden areas.  The garden plants are labeled so visitors can learn which plants do well in the shade or in the sun.

MANN LEISER MUNICIPAL GREENHOUSE
This is where the plant genies of the Municipality perform their magic, growing the rich variety of flowers that adorn the many public plantings around town.  Located at 5200 DeBarr Road in russian Jack Springs Park, it is the ideal place to take a walk with tropical plants.  A great idea on a cool or rainy day!  It is open to the public Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 3 p.m., Saturday and Sunday, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.

CENTENNIAL ROSE GARDEN
The Centennial Rose Garden may be found in the Delaney Park Strip at 9th Avenue and "N" Street.  It is truly a gardening feat, displaying hybrid tea roses surrounded by a hardy rugosa rose hedge.  While the roses are the primary recipients of wonder, it is the volunteers who tend this garden that are amazing.  Every year they cart these potted hybrids to and from an indoor winter protected site.

KINCAID PARK
Located at the far west end of Raspberry Road, inside Kincaid Park is a lovely terraced garden planted in memory of Anchorage skier Andrew Lekisch.  Pink Malvas nestled against large grey boulders make a striking combination with other hardy perennials.

UNIVERSITY OF ALASKA ANCHORAGE
The campus of the University of Alaska Anchorage is another public place to view plants for Anchorage landscapes.  Their talented gardeners and horticulturists have planted many unusual ornamental trees and shrubs to frame the many garden vignettes along the sidewalks of the campus.

VISUAL GARDENS
These gardens to be viewed while driving, walking, or riding a bicycle are treasured for the sheer pleasure of their unexpected appearances, and are among Anchorage's floral fixtures.  The Municipality offers a surprise each year with the Hillside Picture at 15th Avenue and "L" Street.  This type of floral graphic is rooted in the gardening traditions of the Victorian era.  Gratitude is owed to the Anchorage Garden Club for the planting at the eastern end of 5th Avenue where it merges with 6th Avenue.  Numerous other plantings are maintained by community volunteers in neighborhoods throughout the city.