Boyce Thompson
Arboretum
Superior, Arizona
March 2010
This 320-acre arboretum was founded in 1924 and opened to
the public in 1929. About 40 acres are developed into
gardens. The collections include more than 3,000 species of
desert plants from around the world.
I worked at this arboretum for several years in the 1980's.
It's always interesting to revisit a garden after a number
of years. I'm finding this especially true of gardens that
I once worked at. For me, it's partly nostalgia but it's
also great to see all the changes. The investment you make
in a garden while working there creates a connection that
lasts.
It always amazes me that the Boyce Thompson Arboretum
manages to survive. It's located sort of in the middle of
nowhere. The explosive growth of the Phoenix Valley has
made the arboretum a bit less isolated, but it's still
nearly 60 miles from any population center. Yet they've
managed to keep going for 80 years. Survival is one thing
but I wondered if they'd made any progress in the years
since I left.
Pulling into the parking lot, things look almost exactly as
they did when I left 25 years ago. This isn't surprising
because the Visitor Center was new when I worked there and
large boxed trees were used in the landscaping to give
immediate impact. I find it kind of comforting to feel
right at home and know exactly where I'm going. It's no
longer new but the entrance is still pretty nice and the
overall effect of the entrance and landscaping is
beautiful.
Walking through the entrance there's a gift shop, an art
gallery and an interpretive center. All are small and would
probably qualify as quaint when compared with many gardens.
But staff and volunteers were available and helpful and it
all felt very welcoming. You emerge directly onto a trail
on the other side and within a few steps are confronted
with your first choice. The Sonoran Trail wasn't open when
I worked here, and the Curandero Trail wasn't even thought
of, so this is my first chance to see what's new. One of
the things I really like about the Arboretum is the trail
map. It's very lo-tech, just a black and white page printed
on both sides. But it contains better, more valuable
information than the glossy brochures most gardens give to
visitors. Looking at the map now, I can see that this is a
loop trail 0.3 miles long. Too few garden maps give any
indication of how long a trail is and I think it is great
information to provide.
The Curandero Trail highlights medicinal plants of the
southwestern US and northwestern Mexico. Many of these
plants are part of the native vegetation of the Arboretum,
others have been brought in but are planted in a very
naturalistic fashion. Walking the trail feels like walking
through lush natural desert. There is ample signage about
the trail and about the individual species. I love
interpretive signage and generally stop to read everything
in a museum or garden, but I was overwhelmed by the amount
of information included in the signs. The signs are
beautiful but to me they are just too much.
I understand wanting to convey as much information as
possible to visitors, but when there is this much
information, maybe a brochure or other handout is called
for.
There is a small spur off this trail. The trailhead is
marked by two magnificent Nolina matapensis.
Then the trail takes you down to what feels like a palm
oasis with several beautiful Mexican palm species.
Planting in the Demonstration Garden was just beginning
while I worked here, so I was curious to see how it had
developed. I was pleasantly surprised that it had changed
so much I wouldn't have recognized it except for the sign.
It includes several beautiful features, including a
Tropical Garden,
a Backyard Oasis,
and a Desert Garden, showing cactus and succulents used in
a landscape setting.
Next on the tour is the Smith Building, the old visitor
center. It's a beautiful old stone building with two
greenhouse attached, one devoted to cacti, one to
succulents.
This is probably the only area of the Arboretum that was a
disappointment to me. The building has great potential as
an interpretive center but there are only a few tired signs
on the walls. The rest of the space is empty. And the
greenhouses and greenhouse collections were in need of
updating when I was there 25 years ago and little has been
done since I left. The plant collection outside is so
spectacular that the greenhouses really stick out as
neglected. I understand that they want to be able to show
cacti and succulents that are not hardy outside, but they
should really find a more aesthetic and interesting way of
doing it.
But back on the trails one can quickly forget the
disappointment of the greenhouses. There is a great
Eucalyptus forest. I know there are lots of problems with
Eucalyptus. They can be weedy and invasive and fire
hazards. Still, I find them aesthetically spectacular.
Their huge size, delicate flowers and sculptural trunks are
things of beauty.
The Eucalyptus forest is one of the oldest features of the
Arboretum with some magnificent old trees, but recently
they have enhanced it by creating an entire Australian
Garden around it. They've recreated an Aboriginal water
seep, a Drover's Wool Shed and an outback campsite and
they've added an array of Australian plants making a great
new display.
Another new
feature is the Desert Legume Garden, highlighting the
importance of desert legumes to humankind. It's an
interesting garden with great hardscaping and signage, but
I wasn't impressed with the plants. I'll attribute that to
the time of year and assume that in Spring the plantings
will be spectacular.
A highlight of the Arboretum is the Cactus and Succulent
Garden. It features many grand old specimens but the real
highlight of it is the setting. The garden is nestled up
against some of the most spectacular scenery in the Arizona
desert.
Other highlights include a Chihuahuan Desert Exhibit
featuring spectacular yuccas, a South American deserts
display which highlights the similarities between North
American and South American deserts, an herb garden,
riparian areas and some of the most beautiful Sonoran
Desert I've ever seen. I'm happy to report that the
Arboretum has done very well in the years since I left. I
said at the beginning that it is a long way from anywhere,
and it is. However I have to say it is a journey worth
making. There are other desert gardens that are more
accessible and with better plant collections but I don't
think any other desert garden is as spectacular.
Click here
to see more photos of the
Boyce Thompson Arboretum.
Click here to visit the website of Boyce Thompson
Arboretum.