Desert Botanical
Garden
Phoenix, Arizona
March 2010
This garden was founded in 1939. It sits
on 140 acres, of which about 50 are developed. Its
collections include nearly 4,000 species of plants
representing arid regions throughout the world. Especially
noteworthy are the collections of cactus and agaves. The
garden is active in conservation work and is a
participating institution of the national organization, the
Center for Plant Conservation.
I worked at this garden in the late 1990's and I thought it
was a wonderful garden then. It has undertaken a number of
major projects, both new and renovations, in the ten years
since I left, so I'm very interested to see how the new
look compares with my memory of the place.
The admissions area has changed dramatically. I remember
entering along a dirt path from the parking lot, to a
wooden shack where you paid admission. It was quaint and
similar to what many small gardens have. Now you enter
through a sculpted iron portico, and follow a cement path
past raised beds and Chihuly sculptures before arriving at
the admissions plaza.
It's a
remarkable change and is now an entrance much more
befitting a major botanic garden.
Just beyond the admissions plaza is a major new entry
garden with formal beds of cacti and succulents. The area
is beautiful and elegant. The formal, geometric beds show
off the sculptural beauty of the plants, and provide a
great setting for an Allan Houser sculpture. Gardens are
great places to display large-scale sculpture. To my mind,
a sculpture displayed among the forms of nature is much
more visually appealing than displayed against the
architectural forms of buildings. Desert Botanical Garden
has made great use of sculpture in the garden recently.
During my visit they were showcasing the work of Allan
Houser, with 18 pieces displayed around the grounds.
Earlier they highlighted the glass sculptures of Dale
Chihuly. I didn't get to see it, but the piece that is
still displayed near the entrance tells me it must have
been quite something.
On the far side of the entry garden is the Desert
Wildflower Loop Trail. This area highlights the wildflowers
of North American deserts and their pollinators. I'm sure
it's a spectacular garden during wildflower season, but in
March it is a bit disappointing. The signage is handsome
and informative but the garden itself is rather dismal,
with chicken wire draped over everything to protect it from
rabbits and almost no flowers to be seen.
Leaving the Wildflower Trail, you proceed through the main
area of the garden on the Desert Discovery Loop Trail. The
first major attractions are the recently renovated Cactus
and Succulent Galleries. These used to be simple shade
cloth and wood structures. They are now beautiful arching
metal landscape features with a spacious, well-landscaped
plaza between them..
Inside, the beds are planted with an array of plants
demonstrating the beauty and diversity of cacti and
succulents. There is also attractive and informative
signage, although I was disappointed at how few plants were
identified. Maybe they are trying for a strictly aesthetic
look and feel labels will detract, but I think most people
like to know the names of plants. At least I do.
The next major exhibit is the Agave-Yucca Forest. This is
also new. The garden has always had a world-class
collection of these plants, but they were scattered
throughout the grounds. Bringing many species together
allows visitors to appreciate the diversity among the
different kinds, as well as the sculptural beauty of
individual plants.
The Plants and People of the Sonoran Desert Trail wanders
through enhanced native Sonoran Desert with numerous
exhibits showing how Native Americans used plants.
The Sonoran Desert Trail interprets plants and animals of
the Sonoran Desert. There are beautiful large Senita and
Organpipe cactus from extreme southern Arizona as well as
examples of most of the cacti and other plants native to
the deserts around Phoenix. Most of the Desert Botanical
garden is flat, but this trail climbs enough to give
beautiful views over the garden and to the surrounding
mountains.
A new plaza has added much needed organization to the herb
garden. Interesting signage and well displayed plants add
interest, but the desert plants are really the highlight of
this place.
The Huntington Desert Garden has a more diverse and
spectacular collection of plants, but this is a very nice
garden. And the Huntington doesn't have the amazing natural
setting this garden enjoys.
Click here
to see more photos of the
Desert Botanical Garden.
Click here to visit the website of Desert
Botanical Garden.