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Collection Gardens

Explore the Gardens

Nestled within Tohono Chul’s 49 acres of natural desert are a variety of distinct gardens and trails, each offering its own sense of place and discovery. Accessible, easy-to-navigate pathways wind throughout the grounds, inviting visitors to explore diverse landscapes, hidden corners, charismatic wildlife, and Sonoran Desert flora. Thoughtful design elements with surprises and moments of beauty are around every turn.

GARDEN MAP

Accredited Botanical Garden & Arboretum

Tohono Chul is recognized as both an accredited botanical garden by Botanic Gardens Conservation International (BGCI) and a Level II accredited arboretum by ArbNet. These distinctions are awarded to institutions that demonstrate excellence in plant collections, education, public engagement, and conservation while reflecting our ongoing commitment to exceptional horticulture and environmental stewardship.

Coming Soon: Adaptive Arboretum ​

This new garden showcases climate-resilient trees selected for their ability to thrive in the Sonoran Desert while providing essential shade and cooling benefits for both the landscape and our community. As the canopy grows, so does a living model of how thoughtful tree selection can help build a more comfortable, sustainable future in Tucson.

Through guided tours and hands-on workshops, visitors will explore how to choose, plant, and care for native and desert-adapted trees. The garden is designed as both a learning space, an event space, and a living resource—supporting anyone interested in creating greener, more resilient outdoor spaces at home and across our region.

Children’s Garden

A whimsical space that is a favorite with families visiting the park. The snake stream and shade structure make this an ideal place to visit during the heat of the day while the open design and ample lighting make this a great place to program evening children’s activities. The plant palette is based on the “Sensory garden” concept, with fragrant, thornless plants that are safe for children to touch.

Desert Living Courtyard

The Desert Living Courtyard features a series of small vignettes demonstrating home-scale gardening concepts such as the Barrio Garden, Dry Shade Garden, and Meditation Garden. This area also hosts the Children’s Museum of Oro Valley and some of the original spaces have been converted to child-friendly areas with water features, games, and fanciful fairy gardens.

Desert Palm Oasis

Upon entering the Desert Palm Oasis, visitors are transported into the palm canyons of Sonora and Baja with large specimens creating a sense of significant enclosure and immersion. The plants here are drawn from several canyons in the Sonoran Desert with a focus on species that occur in Nacapule Canyon just north of San Carlos, Sonora.

Performance Garden

This open space is home to Tohono Chul’s stage and is the main area programmed for music during events at the park. The planting focus is on shade trees and large shrubs that give the garden a contained feeling. With rustic shade structures, a border of flowering shrubs, a beautiful view of the Santa Catalina Mountains, and ample seating, this is the ideal place to spend an evening in good company, enjoying music, friends, and libations.

Penstemon Garden

Featuring a wide variety of penstemons and other wildflowers, this garden originated with the intention of showcasing as many penstemon species as possible. It has since evolved to focus on penstemons and other flowering plants that will thrive in the particular conditions of the Sonoran Desert.

Sonoran Seasons

The five distinct sections of the Sonoran Seasons Garden each showcase a selection of species that come to life during one of the five seasons that define our region. With Fall, Winter, Spring, Dry Summer, and Wet Summer gardens, visitors can experience the unique changes that occur each year in the Sonoran Desert as temperature and rainfall patterns shift.

Sami’s Courtyard

Formerly known as the “Spanish Colonial Garden”, this space underwent a major renovation in 2023. Located at a crossroads in the park, this is an ideal space to mix and mingle in the shade of massive ironwood trees planted at the park in 1985.

Sin Agua Garden

Using basins, swales, and culverts to draw in water from Ina and Northern Roads, this garden demonstrates the way that property owners in Tucson can supplement their landscape water needs with rainfall. Featuring an assemblage of Sonoran Desert species, this is a great demonstration garden for people hoping to reduce their water impact and steward our most precious resource.

Streamside Garden

One of the first gardens created by the Wilsons at Tohono Chul. A trickling stream, faux ruins in a Sonoran adobe and plaster style, and huge riparian trees make this one of the best places in the park to enjoy peace and quiet. This garden also hosts the “Geology Wall,” an exhibit designed by Richard Wilson that tells the geologic story of the Santa Catalina Mountains.

Succulent & Cactus Garden

A selection of cacti and succulents from around the globe helps introduce visitors to the concept of convergent evolution, the process by which plants from different taxonomic backgrounds evolve similar traits to cope with similar conditions.

Sundial Plaza

The plaza is a lush and inviting garden space where visitors are encouraged to stop and sit at the high-top tables and read a book, work in the open air, or sit and enjoy a snack. With a focus on flowering shrubs and shade trees, this space hosts a lot of wildlife and is a great place to observe hummingbirds, rabbits, and the occasional rattlesnakes. The focal point of this garden is the iconic sundial at its center.
Explore the trail