Desert Botanical Garden

The Desert Botanical Garden is a 140 acre botanical garden located in Phoenix. It offers the world's finest collection of arid-land plants from deserts around the world.
Founded by the Arizona Cactus and Native Flora Society in 1937, the garden now has more than 21,000 plants.
Spring is a wonderful time to visit as many cacti and other plants are in bloom. When I visited, many plants were just beginning to bloom. Enjoy....

Hibiscus

Hibiscus is a flowering plant in the mallow family. The blooms are quite large and beautiful. I recently bought a small plant which I put in a pot on my patio. There are many bushes in my neighborhood that are large and gorgeous. I'm hoping mine does okay.
Hibiscus flowers can be made into teas and herbal drinks. Historically different cultures have used the tea as a remedy for several conditions.
Mine is just to enjoy....

Smoked Salmon Tower

I recently ordered this for my lunch at S&V Urban Italian Restaurant. It has diced smoked salmon, lemon juice, seedless cucumber, sliced radishes, avocado, tomato relish and crushed black pepper oil. It was served with crostini.
Isn't it beautiful?.....

The Hyatt Regency Scottsdale Resort and Spa at Gainey Ranch

This resort is the most stunning I have ever seen. It is situated on 27 acres not too far from my home. There are 10 pools plus waterslides and a man-made beach.
"Live from Laurel Canyon", one of the "Concerts Under the Stars" was performed last night and we went with our friends.
We had previously seen this show at the Musical Instrument Museum. It features the stories and music of American Folk Rock from the 60's and 70's.
What a beautiful spot to see a concert! We had a fabulous time!

Coots

Coots are all water birds and abound on the lakes near my home. They have predominantly black plumage and eat mainly plant material....the grass all along the bike path. The oldest known coot lived to be 22 years old.
In the winter there are so many but where do they go in the summer? Apparently they just move north a bit to get out of our severe heat in the summer. A few more months and they will be leaving.