Tucson Botanical
Gardens
Tucson, Arizona
June 2008
Tucson Botanical Gardens is
located on about 5 acres in a residential area of Tucson.
The Gardens opened to the public in 1975. Today it is a
lush oasis in the middle of a dry city.
Within the grounds are a number of specialty gardens,
ranging from bird and butterfly gardens to Native American
gardens. The Native American gardens and the
Cactus-Succulent garden
are nice, well-cared for with good signage, but there are
better examples at most other desert gardens. The things I
like best here are the features and displays that are not
found at other gardens.
One thing that stands out to me is all the color used in
the hardscaping. The colorful tiles on walls and benches
give the garden a unique feel, like being in a hacienda in
old Mexico (or so it seems to me).
I also love the Historical Garden,
with its preserved plantings from the 1930’s and 1940’s.
Not only is the garden beautiful and lush because of its
age, but it also offers a great interpretive opportunity:
to use changes in landscape palette and design to talk
about changes in society; to talk about our gardening
heritage and its place in our history. Gardens play an
important role in society and too often we gloss over that
importance by concentrating on aesthetics.
I also love the herb garden.
With its bright colors, glazed pots and fountain it is
unlike the staid European herb garden featured most places.
I liked this garden much more than I expected to. It is a
lovely neighborhood garden offering many programs for
locals, but it also preserves an important part of our
gardening past and offers valuable messages about
gardening’s place in society.
To see more photos of the Tucson Botanical Garden,
click here.
Click here to visit the official website of the
Tucson Botanical Garden.