Botanic Briefings

DATES: March 17, April 15, May 5
TIMES: 12-1 p.m.
PRICE: Included in Garden Admission or Membership

Join us for monthly informative presentations from Garden staff and other local experts. Dorrance Hall

March 17: The Hassica An Garden: an ethnobotanical and research site in the Comcaac Land of Sonora, Mexico

• Speaker: Raul Puente, Curator of living Collections & Research Botanist

Since 2015, Desert Botanical Garden’s researchers have been making trips to the coast of Sonora as part of our columnar cacti studies, along with collecting seeds and herbarium vouchers, in land belonging to one of the most enigmatic indigenous groups in the Sonoran Desert region of Mexico: the Comcaac Nation. The Comcaac, in the past known as the Seri Indians, are famous for their knowledge and ample use of native plants as food, medicinal, construction and handcrafts, such as baskets and ironwood carvings. We have been helping to develop a piece of land adjacent to the village of Punta Chueca, as a long term plot for research on the climate change impact on columnar cacti, as well as an ethnobotanical trail to promote plant uses among local youth and visitors.

April 15: Safeguarding Our Desert Icon: Inside the Saguaro Initiatives at Desert Botanical Garden

• Speaker: Tania Hernandez, New World Succulents Cactus Scientist

The Saguaro Initiatives are a set of research, conservation, and community-science programs led by Desert Botanical Garden to understand, protect and restore saguaros across the Phoenix Valley and our changing desert. This talk will share what we are learning about saguaro genetics, health, survival, and resilience in the face of rising heat and drought, and how these efforts connect science, volunteers, saguaro owners and long-term conservation. Attendees will also learn how the community can participate in helping safeguard this iconic species for future generations.

May 5: Citizen Science Monitoring of Urban Saguaro Health: The Saguaro Monitoring Program within the Desert Botanical Garden’s Saguaro Initiatives

• Speaker: Billie Fraser, ASU Masters of Science Program 

The Saguaro Census, organized by the Desert Botanical Garden, provides an important snapshot of saguaro distribution across the Phoenix Valley. However, long-term monitoring is essential to strengthen these data and better understand changes in plant health and survival over time. To address this need, the Saguaro Monitoring Program was developed as a student- and volunteer-led initiative in which community members are assigned a plot of approximately 20 saguaros that they visit regularly to document plant health and condition. As the project completes its first year of surveys, results from the initial monitoring effort will be presented, along with a discussion of the benefits and challenges of using citizen science to monitor urban plant populations.