The San Francisco Botanical Garden is hosting a Free Spring Garden Market, giving locals a chance to snag plants, get gardening advice, and enjoy one of the city's most underrated green spaces without reaching for their wallets.

In a city where a single avocado toast runs you $19, "free" is a word that deserves a moment of appreciation. The Botanical Garden — tucked inside Golden Gate Park — is already one of SF's best-kept secrets for residents, who get free admission year-round with proof of residency.

If you haven't visited the Botanical Garden lately, pair it with a free trip up the de Young Museum's observation tower — as one local visitor noted, "you can do it for free without a museum ticket" — and you've got yourself a genuinely great afternoon in Golden Gate Park that costs you exactly zero dollars.

Spring in San Francisco is fleeting and precious, before Karl the Fog reclaims his throne in June. Take advantage. Go get a free plant. Put it on your fire escape. Watch it grow.