Desert Botanical Garden, Botanical garden in Phoenix, United States
The Desert Botanical Garden is a 140-acre botanical garden in Papago Park, Phoenix, holding more than 50,000 plants in over 4,000 taxa, a third of them native to the Sonoran Desert. Its collections include 13,973 cacti in 1,320 taxa and 4,026 agaves in 248 taxa. A tall ribbed columnar cactus rises above low shrubs and pale knobby stems, and a semicircular black metal lattice canopy with translucent white fabric panels arches over a bed of desert plants.
A Swedish botanist began a campaign in the 1930s to protect desert vegetation, which led to the founding of this botanical garden in 1937. The institution developed over the following decades into a research site for arid climates.
Since 1978 the garden has held Las Noches de las Luminarias, a winter holiday event lit by 8,000 hand-lit luminarias with live music. Open-air acoustic concerts are staged in spring and fall, alongside art exhibitions and workshops on desert landscaping, nature photography and wellness.
Five thematic trails lead through different areas, including sections for cacti from the Americas and succulents from Africa and Asia. The paths are mostly flat and wheelchair-friendly, though shade is more comfortable early in the morning or late in the day.
An auditorium from the founding era still stands on the grounds and is used for lectures about desert plants. The collection continues to grow through expeditions and seed exchanges with botanical gardens in other dry regions worldwide.
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