Phoenix's Desert Botanical garden is intended to be nature-like and the cacti and succulents are planted in a natural setting, among non-succulent desert shrubs and trees.

The extreme heat of Phoenix summers is not very favorable to many succulent species.  In particular, plants of the crassulaceae family (the jade plant family) have a hard time here, and are not very well represented.  Ice plants are also suffering of the heat and are also present in limited quantities.

This is more than compensated by what is represented here.  The garden collection includes specimens of more than half the cacti, century plants, and aloe species in the world.

Visitors can enjoy a variety of guided trail tours, bird tours, demonstrations, and family activities. Children receive the Garden’s Desert Detective Game Sheets

Summer has little traffic because of the heat, and it is a good time to have a quiet experience in the garden, observing the abundant wild life that is seldom seen when the garden

The temporary entrance while the new buildings are finished

 
The giftshop has one of the largest selection of books on desert gardening, and Arizona wild plants 

New and improved facilities are being built.  The grand opening being at this end of this year 2001. 

Even now, the Garden Gift Shop is an interesting place where to shop.  It has cactus dish gardens, books for children and adults, toys, gourmet foods, jewelry, apparel and stationery. Specially selected decorative items are available for your home, garden and for special events.

The collection of book is outstanding (you can even buy the Desert-Tropicals.com Cacti and Succulents CD there).  If you are a member, you get a 10% discount.  Although the shop is located after the garden entrance booth, just tell the guard that you are just going to the giftshop, and you won't have to pay the entrance fee.

Desert Tropicals Home Page List of All the Plants /b>