The plan is to have the work finished and ready for a dedication the first Saturday in June, Raney said.

“We’re getting ready to really move on this and make it happen,” she said.

Previous renovation work on the garden, built as a Works Progress Administration project, included updated sidewalks in the late 1950s and early 1960s and irrigation expansion in the 1970s, said Mark Linholm, Tulsa Parks horticulturist.

This renovation project will tie the entrance of the rose garden to the Linnaeus Teaching Garden. Its volunteers will help tend to the updated rose garden.

In addition, the Tulsa Rose Garden has been approved as an All-America Selections garden, meaning it will be used as a testing ground for hundreds of plants each season to determine what grows best in the area.

“Keeping the tradition and beauty of the old garden but moving forward to something cutting edge is really exciting,” said Barry Fugatt, director of horticulture at the Tulsa Garden Center.