New! Growing roses in a hot climate

  New! Water-wise lawn replacements

The cactus garden on a late November morning at the now closed Las Vegas Desert Demonstration Garden. A new larger garden is now open at the nearby Springs Preserve.

Visit a Public Garden

Nothing can be more inspiring than an excursion to a beautiful public garden to see how those little one gallon plants you've just set out will look when they begin to mature. Better yet,  visit one of these gardens before you decide what to plant -- just in case that 10 inch high plant turns out to be 10 feet tall and 10 feet wide when mature.

Ethel M Botanical Cactus Garden. 2 Cactus Garden Drive, Henderson NV.  Phone 702-435-2655.  One of the largest cactus collections around, includes both Mojave and Sonoran cactus specimens as well as desert trees in a shady four acre garden.  And you get a free chocolate sample at the end!

North Las Vegas Desert Demonstration Garden.  2200 Civic Center Drive, North Las Vegas NV. Phone: 702-633-1175.  Currently a one acre garden with over 70 varieties of water-smart plants.  Plans are underway for a much larger demonstration garden in North Las Vegas.

Moorton Botanic Garden, 1701 S. Palm Canyon Drive, Palm Springs, CA 92264.  Phone: 760-327-6555.  

Phoenix Desert Botanic Garden, 1201 N. Galvin Parkway, Phoenix, AZ.  Phone: 480-941-1225  Website: dbg.org  A superb 50 acre collection of plants native to the Sonoran Desert and the southwest, including many endangered species. Summer hours: 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.  

Tucson Botanical Gardens, 2150 North Alvernon , Tucson AZ Phone: 520-326-9686. Website: tucsonbotanical.org A five acre garden with 15 specialty gardens designed for residential use.  Open daily, except holidays, from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

One of 7 demonstration gardens at the L.A. Arboretum.

The Los Angeles Arboretum and Botanic Garden, 301 North Baldwin Avenue, Arcadia CA. Phone: 626-821-3222.  Website: arboretum.org  127 acres of tree specimens arranged by geographic origin.  Of special interest are 7 demonstration gardens full of Western native and drought-tolerant plants in beautiful landscaped patio and garden settings. There are also over 22 acres of Australian plants. Hours 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

 University of Nevada Las Vegas Arboretum, UNLV Campus, 4505 Maryland Parkway, Las Vegas NV.  Phone: 702-895-3392.  The entire campus is an arboretum and there is a two-acre xeriscape garden near the Harry Reid Center for Environmental Studies.

Pahrump Desert Demonstration Garden. 1651 East Calvada Boulevard, Pahrump NV.  Phone: 775-727-5532.  A one-acre garden that features drought-tolerant, 
desert -adapted plants.

Battle Born Peace Gardens, Nevada Veterans Nursing Home. 100 Veterans Memorial Drive, Boulder City NV. Phone: 702-332-6864.  An award-winning  twelve acre garden surrounding the Nursing Home has paths winding through it from the courtyards to desert landscapes.