Wednesday, May 08, 2019

An April Stroll through the Desert Botanical Garden, Part One


A couple of weeks ago, Denis and I strolled through the Desert Botanical Garden, stopping off at the Patio Cafe to relax for a bit before finishing in another section of the garden. We had a marvelous time, and-- between the two of us-- we took over 500 photos, so it's taken me some time to go through them all.

I narrowed my list down to fifty last night, and I just don't have the intestinal fortitude to narrow it down any further, so what I'm going to do is split the list in two. Today you'll see some of our photos that were taken on the way to the Patio Cafe. Next week you'll see selections from the Patio Cafe to the end of our time at the garden.

Let's get this stroll on the road!


The bridge leading to the entrance of the garden. Some of the yellow you see is permanent Chihuly glass sculptures.
 
How much more Sonoran Desert can you get? Rocks, prickly pear, agave, and barrel cactus-- all loving the sun.

The contrast between sun and shadow can be quite intense sometimes.

Prickly pear in bloom.

As you can see, not all cactus blossoms are show-offs.

This bee's legs are so covered in pollen it's having a hard time righting itself so it can fly away!

The "snowy season" here is in April when the paloverde trees bloom. I absolutely love seeing all the yellow gold in the valley.

The wildflowers on the Desert Wildflower Loop Trail are still going strong.

Cool blues and other hues.

See what I mean about the paloverdes?

I wish the "twisted" cactus in those two pots had been labeled. They fascinate me!

Outside the Butterfly Conservatory.

Yes, yellow is one of my favorite colors!

Closeup of paloverde blossoms.

Cactus flowers. They do know how to put on a show.

Garden view. (I was in the shade taking a break.)

Look who came to visit me on my break! Meet the Desert Spiny Lizard. With all those colors, isn't he handsome?

He let me take a few photos, but he didn't hang around for long.

Desert forget-me-nots. AKA Scorpion grass.

They blaze like beacons, don't they?

Humans can never outdo Mother Nature.

And here's why I said it snows in April here in the valley. Of course, our snow is gold, not white, because of the paloverdes!

Red fishhook barrel cactus blossoms.

The bridge that leads to the Webster Auditorium and the Patio Cafe.

We met another Desert Spiny Lizard on the bridge, but this one had a narrow escape. Look at all the missing scales on his tail... and it looks like something tried to take a chunk out of it. (Probably a resident roadrunner.) Ouch!

I'll stop now because we've almost reached the Patio Cafe. Stay tuned next week for the rest of our stroll. I love the Desert Botanical Garden-- and I hope you're enjoying it, too. I wish I could take all of you on a guided tour!



6 comments:

  1. Oh, my, those are gorgeous 'photos, Cathy! And it looks as though you had a beautiful day for your trip, too, which is even better. I'm just loving being there virtually.

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    1. It was a gorgeous day, although the sun was a mite intense and those patches of shade were very welcome!

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  2. Yes, great virtual tour. Love those beautiful flowers and everything in bloom. My allergic self is just as happy with looking at the photos. Seeing that bee stuffed with pollen tells me that there is a lot of it in those gardens, and that I'm just as well of looking at photos.

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    1. I am extremely fortunate that I'm not allergic to any of it. How I managed that, I do not know!

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  3. What wonderful pictures! I loved our trip to the garden and I'd like to go again sometime. You guys have definitely reaped a great benefit from your showers this year!!

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