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| - The Desert Botanical Garden
We were lucky to visit on a day with "perfect" weather, 70 degrees and partly cloudy. We even got a AAA discount on our tickets; show your card. Our visit was 5/3/15. The previous weekend the temperature had been in the upper 90's. I can't imagine visiting this garden in the summer (or spring) heat, and I live in Tucson, Arizona. If you are not from the area be aware of the Arizona sun, it is a real threat.
Visiting 5/3/15 Was a great time to visit. The wildflowers are still blooming, the cactus were blooming and the saguaros this year (super early) were starting to bloom.
A lot of people had the same idea, to visit the garden because of the unexpected cool weather, it was busy. There are a few areas of the garden where you will definitely notice the crowd on a busy day, and we were never alone. Still, it was an enjoyable half-a-day.
I asked a volunteer how long it typically took people to see the garden. When she answered two hours, I knew I had to double the time. In fact, it took me just over four hours to see "everything." Pick up a free map. It is a nice guide to the gardens.
It is a lot of walking. There are options to cut out some areas of the garden, if you would like a quicker tour. Some of the paths are paved and some are not. There are even a few wifi spots if you just can leave your technology alone.
Most of the plants are dessert plants, which is to be expected. I love dessert plants. They are so different, strange, and unique to their environment. There was also a nice herb garden.
I was impressed by the volunteers they were helpful and informative. There were also some Master Gardeners answering questions. The Master Gardner program is an impressive program. It was nice to see them set up at the Desert Botanical Garden.
The butterfly exhibit is small, but offers many types of butterflies close up and easy to photograph. I even saw two luna moths, beautiful. There is an extra $3.50 charge for non-members to see the butterflies. I thought the price was reasonable and worth it. I liked the natural light and air in the butterfly house, it really made it nice.
The butterfly exhibit was the only area it cost extra to visit. There is also a pond area with water plants and with big noisy frogs. The pond was fun to see.
It is nice, and important, to stop for a break. I had a sandwich at the Terrace Cafe it was large and good. The food at the cafe is assembled in advance, grab-and-go, so if you are the type of person that likes to leave stuff off you might want to pack your own lunch. You can also get a cup of coffee or tea at the cafe which is nice.
There is some art in the garden and it is nice, but I would love to see even more garden art added in the future.
Overall this is a very nice garden. Go see it if you are in the Phoenix area and if the weather isn't too hot. Wear sunscreen and a hat. Drink water. There are many water fountains throughout the park but bring a water bottle. This is a nice place to see desert plants. It is a beautifully maintained garden. When I visited there were many plants blooming, including some very unique ones. This is a garden I would be happy to visit again.
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