Alen Jackson 
Come to the Garden during the day for a zen walk around a tapestry-like maze of tapestry-like clovers of terrazzo, or experience spectacular sunsets from Cardon Plaza on Papago Buttes. Or hang around a little longer to see exclusive exhibits and activities.
Also take shoes and water. There will be guided tours, members only entry free.
The Gardens
If the Old West was your idea of desert plants and tumbleweeds, Phoenix has an unmatched range of desert plants in an outdoor environment at its Desert Botanical Garden. A whirlwind attraction and conservation pioneer, its rare plant garden hails from deserts worldwide and is a real must see.
The park is organised into five theme trails on conservation, desert life and Sonoran Desert wildflowers. They also do tours, lectures, workshops concerts and seasonal displays; not to mention Gertrude’s restaurant Patio Cafe and garden gift shop!
At the centre of the botanical gardens lies one of the world’s largest collections of agaves: 171 species and varieties in all are planted through nature for a sight to be remembered in a way that contrasts so pleasantly with the landscape.
The Sculpture Garden
Beautifulness and science combine in a unique tour at the Garden to help you learn more about arid ecosystems and their central place in our world. There will be quiet wonder, more than 50,000 desert plants, wild paths, a world class exhibition, and holiday fun!
Fernando Botero’s sublime sculptures are alive not just at the Garden but elsewhere, from New York’s Park Avenue to Paris’ Champs-Elysees. His work sets itself against the rugged cacti and red rock of Papago Buttes, around which this scene is encamped.
HYBYCOZO’s Light Bloom connects art and nature through epic geometric light works that turn a Garden of plants on its head. Wander its pathways after sunset for a magical experience that illuminates desert in glowing light that creates rich shadows and colors flowers and plants. Visitors can visit on their own or as part of guided tours, which dive deeper into this garden.
The Center for Plant Conservation
The Garden’s state-of-the-art conservation collections lab has already saved rare and threatened desert plant seeds on a very real and tangible level. Conservation Collections Manager Steve Blackwell and Garden scientists photograph, test, store and germinate seed from the most critical desert plants – doing work to save these creatures and their habitats from extinction and climate change for so many lives.
And the Garden is also devoted to protecting and observing exotic cacti and succulents so that threats to their existence — from invasion of invasive species to habitat loss — can be detected and managed. Their Research and Conservation staff are in the field conducting studies for them that are done by their talented Research and Conservation staff, working with organizations around the world to make their dream of conserving desert habitats and the species they support a reality.
The Herbarium
Desert Botanical Garden: Desert plants are represented at an international level in the exhibition, research and protection. They have rare and endangered species of cacti and succulents, as well as an unparalleled diversity of old world agaves and yuccas from around the world.
The Garden herbarium is one of the best botanical collections in the country. Such buried specimens – marked, labelled and photographed – make a treasure-trove of information, a judge of proper names, and a database of local vegetation diversity and distribution.
The Garden’s Herbarium is a part of its Pollinators Conservation Programme. The personnel at this centre research how butterflies are affected by desert species such as milkweed – a key food plant for the monarch butterfly – and educate people about issues such as plant propagation, climate change in desert ecosystems and more. And its greenhouse and seed bank are indispensable for saving species for the future.
