Dragonfly
Walk July 4, August 1
July 4, Saturday, at 9:30 a.m., then again August 1 and September
5
Ayer Lake and Queen Creek are great places to see and photograph beautiful
dragonfly species such as Blue-eyed Darner and Flame Skimmer -- learn to identify
these colorful insects on a two-hour walk guided by Arizona State Parks Volunteers
Roger Racut and Joe Marsala July 4 and again August 1; then on walk September
5 will be guided by with Pierre Device, and the October 3 tour by Joanne Henry.
See Dragonfly Photos, read Arboretum
Dragonfly reports
Summer 6:30 Bird Walks July
11 and August 16
July 11, Saturday, from 6:30 - 8:30 a.m. -- and again August 16
(Sunday) with author Jim Burns
Learn to identify native Sonoran desert birds, and exotic migrants as well,
on a two-hour bird walk guided by ASU Professor Dave Pearson July 11, Saturday,
from 6:30 to 9:30 a.m. Leader for the August bird walk will be Scottsdale
Author Jim Burns; the author will be available in the visitor center to sign
copies of his new book "Jim Burns Arizona Birds: From the Backyard to
the Backwoods" following the tour. Read
recent bird checklists posted at http://ag.arizona.edu/BTA/events/birdwalks.html
Learn Your Lizards Guided Walk July 11, August
8
walking tour at 8:30 a.m. July 11, August 8 -- and a "Sunday
Special" tour September 6
Desert Spiny Lizards can grow big as bratwursts -- and they're among a half-dozen
lizard species which are commonly seen and easy to photograph around the trails
and gardens here at the Arboretum. Bring your binoculars for the best close-up
looks at lizards, and join this guided walking tour to learn more. Tours continue
July 11 with popular Arizona State
Parks volunteer "Wild Man Phil" Rakoci as our special guest
tour leader -- along with University of Arizona reptile researcher Phil Rosen.
Phil August 8, then Abi King from the Arizona Game & Fish Department guides
our walks September 6 and again September 12.
Read more about Boyce Thompson Arboretum
Lizard Walks
Margie Porter Gallery Exhibit
(Final Weekend)
Ends July 11, Saturday
Margie Porter is featured during June
and early July with a solo show in our Visitor Center Gallery. During July
and August the art gallery features works by Gila Community College students.
Cindy Leverton Drawing Workshop Sunday July 12
Scottsdale artist Cindy Leverton has won kudos for her botanical
renderings and still life portraits - this summer she'll offer her talents
at Boyce Thompson Arboretum once each month, leading early-mornings basic
drawing classes which begin Sunday, July 12. Additional classes will be scheduled
in August and September -- call 520-689-2723 to enroll and pre-pay, or to
be added to an email alert list for future class dates. Each workshops is
$20 for members or $27.50 for nonmembers, with an additional $5 for participants
who don't bring their own art supplies (graphite pencils, paper, whiteboard).
Plan to arrive early, three-hour classes will begin at 7:00 a.m. so participants
can enjoy the cooler morning hours in the shaded Demonstration Garden. View
some of the artists' work at http://gallery.briofinearts.com/ArtistRoom.aspx?room=64
* BTA Members-only
event * Star Night Astronomy Picnic July 18
Arboretum members may each bring up to four nonmember guests, at
$5 per person, for an evening of picnicing under the stars -- followed by
stargazing through telescopes generously brought here by members of the East
valley Astronomy Club. Sign up soon, spaces are limited! You're not already
a member? Call today, have your credit card ready and enroll by phone! Membership
starts at just $45 for a year for a couple, and includes guest passes and
invitations to special events such as this one. BTA volunteer David Oberpriller
will offer a new “Astronomy 101” slideshow and talk in the lecture
room from 5:00 – 6:00 p.m., followed by grilled hotdogs and a BTA members’
potluck dinner in the picnic area, then sky-watching from dusk until 10:00
p.m. Pre-payment is required - $5 for each member (and up to four guests).
To pre-pay by credit card, call 520-689-2723 daytimes from 7:00 a.m. until
2:30 pm
Read more about annual membership
Plants of the
Bible Guided Walk Saturdays - June 20 and July 18
June 20, Saturday, at 8:30 a.m. ** Please note - Summer tours at
8:30 a.m. June 20, July 18, August 15
Learn about botany, history and scripture on this slow-paced and relaxing
walk down smooth and flat trails that are wheelchair-accessible. Arboretum
volunteer David Oberpriller guides this tour on the third Saturday of each
month.
Palms, figs and pomegranates are Plants
of the Bible.
Photography Walk-a-Bout -- July 19
July 19, Sunday, at 6:30 a.m.
East Valley Tribune photographer Tom Boggan has a talent for portraits and
a passion for nature photography at Boyce Thompson Arboretum, where he volunteers
his time helping people improve their camera skills. Once each month this
summer he'll lead a 6:30 a.m. class teaching basic photography skills including
composition, lighting and exposure -- and offering a chance for one-on-one
time helping students understand the dials and settings on their cameras.
Check
out this gallery of images Tom and students posted after the April
workshop.
Workshops are limited to ten students, and pre-payment of $27.50 is required
($20 for BTA annual members). To enroll by phone have your credit card ready
and call Arboretum staff at 520-689-2723.
Read more about specific classes and dates.
Trees Tour - a Sunday Walk with Terry Mikel
July 19, August 16
June 21, Sunday, at 8:30 a.m. and then again July 19
"What's an Arboretum?" Terry Mikel is our special guest as tour
guide for a Sunday walk where visitors learn the answer to that often-posed
question during a relaxed and leisurely guided tour through the forested areas
of the Arboretum. Join us for a chance to learn about the towering
sycamore and cottonwood trees, native hackberry, mesquite and many more. Summer
tour time is 8:30 a.m
"The
Arboretum Rocks!" -- geology walking tour July 25, August 22
July 25 at 8:30 a.m. and then again and August 22 -- then back
to 1:30 p.m. for the Fall and Winter season
Our geology tour teaches about some of the rocks and volcanic formations seen
along the main trail -- and will span almost two billion years of geologic
history in just over one educational hour! Join us to learn about Pinal schist,
the volcanic origins of Picket Post Mountain and the Apache Leap tuff with
tourguide Ben Henderson -- a professional geologist from Miami, AZ, and an
Arizona State Parks volunteer. Come learn
about the rocks that make this region one of the world's richest in copper
and how an active geologic past shaped the landscape we see today.
Butterfly Walk July 25, August
2 (A "Sunday Special") and August 22
July 25, Saturday, at 9:30 a.m., then again August 2, August 22, September
26 and October 24
Learn to identify common species of butterflies -- and about the colorful
insects' life cycles -- on a two-hour walk through the Demonstration and Hummingbird-Butterfly
Gardens. Check out this Recent Butterfly
List. Summer walks will be guided by Kurt Radamaker on June 27, then
we'll have a "Sunday Special" walk lead by Ron Rutkowski on August
2. Members of the Central Arizona Butterfly Association (cazba.org)
will have their annual butterfly count here at the Arboretum September
12 -- and visitors are welcome to tag along! Arizona State Parks volunteers
lead these walks and also participate with the ongoing monarch butterfly migration
research project. Read more with a visit
to BTA/monarchbutterflies
* * * Saturday Evening Music
After Hours July 25
July 25, Saturday, music from 6:00 p.m. until 7:30 p.m.
Update: Cedar Flute musician Jospeh Leal is recovering from motorcycle injuries
and not able to play here on July 25, as was previously announced.
Edible and Medicinal Desert Plants Guided Walk
July 26, Sunday, at 8:30 a.m. -- and again August 23 -- then tour
time moves to 1:30 p.m. September 27 and October 25
Apache Junction author Jean Groen guides this tour on July 26 at 8:30 a.m.,
teaching participants some of the desert plants have fed, clothed and healed
indigenous people for a thousand years. Ethno-botanist and Choctaw Tribal
Nation member Dave Morris leads our guided tour August 23. ** Please note:
this tour explores the Curandero Trail, which has steep sections that are
not suitable for visitors who use wheelchairs or walkers.
Read more about jojoba, creosote and prickly
pears
"Opuntia Punch"
How-To-Juice-A-Prickly-Pear Class
August 16, August 29 and September 7 at 10:30 a.m.
Have you ever sipped a prickly pear cactus fruit margarita or nibbled candy
made from cactus fruit? If so, you know that nothing compares to the
subtle flavor and outrageous magenta color of juice from fruits of the prickly
pear cactus that can be harvested throughout Arizona. This informal hour-long
class at Boyce Thompson Arboretum is offered toward the end of summer when
prickly pear fruits ripen.
Come learn how to harvest opuntia cactus
fruits and extract the juice without turning your hands into a "porcupine"
of painful glochids and cactus spines. Apache Junction author Jean Groen ("Foods
of the Superstitions") is the harvest season guest for each of these
three class dates. There's no fee or pre-registration; this class is included
with daily admission of $7.50 for adults, $3 for ages 5-12.
"Bye Bye Buzzards" Day September 26 -- Special
Early Opening at 7:00 a.m.
September 26 - event from 7:00 a.m. until 2:00 p.m.
Our signature Autumnal event is this seasonal salute to the Arboretum's migrant
flock of Turkey Vultures before the huge black birds fly south to spend winter
months in Mexico. Celebrate ornithology and learn about these misunderstood
scavengers - birds which play an integral role in our Sonoran desert ecosystem.
Arrive early to observe the Arboretum's resident vultures from 7-8:30 a.m.,
then join us for an 8:30 a.m. bird walk guided by Arboretum volunteers and
staff. Exhibitors include Desert Rivers Audubon Society and also the popular
Arizona Game & Fish Department wildlife rehab volunteers with their birds,
reptiles and small mammals from 8:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. See photos at http://ag.arizona.edu/BTA/events/buzzards.html
Pomegranate Class
September 27, Sunday, at 10:30 a.m.
The most popular variety of Pomegranates are called "Wonderful"
-- and with good reason, these hardy fruits are loaded with anti-oxidants,
delicious, and they grow well in Pima, Pinal and Gila County. Learn how to
harvest and juice these healthy fruits in our informal one-hour class Sunday,
September 27. No pre-registration is needed -- this class is included with
regular daily admission of $7.50 for adults, $3 for ages 5-12.
Fall Plant Sale -- Daily from October 9 through
October 25
Event during business hours from 8:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m.
Autumn is harvest season; also the time to plant herbs and the right months
to prepare your Spring flower garden. Stock up during this annual fundraiser
which helps support education and conservation here at Arizona's oldest and
largest botanical garden. The event begins with our popular October 9"Members'
Only Preview Friday" with 20-percent savings. The sale opens to the public
October 10 and continues daily through October 25. Daily throughout the sale
staff horticulturists and groundskeepers will be available to answer your
plant questions and offer landscaping advice. Special
Plant Sale events are posted at BTA/events/plantsale
Mesquite Bean Flour Class
October 11, Sunday, at 10:30 a.m.
Got a mesquite tree in your yard? Don't know how to use those legumes? Attend
our Sunday morning class and learn to grind your own flour from mesquite bean
pods Sunday, October 11. Instructor Jean Groen will also share a few recipes
-- and snacks made from mesquite bean pod flour and other desert edibles.
No pre-registration is needed -- this class is included with regular daily
admission of $7.50 for adults, $3 for ages 5-12.
Live Music Festival November 14, Saturday
From 11:00 a.m. until 4:00 p.m.
Did you enjoy the occasional summer series of Saturday nights with music and
extended evening hours? A few of the same performers will be showcased Nov.
14 during a Saturday of live music "both acoustic and eclectic"
featuring different performances each hour in various gardens and collections
around the Arboretum. Bookmark the page below -- revisit our website in September
to read the complete list of performers and concert times. http://ag.arizona.edu/BTA/events/folkfestival.html
Plein Air Fall Color Paint-Out
November 28 from 9:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.
Bring your drop-cloth, brushes and easel. Glorious autumn foliage is at peak
around Thanksgiving weekend here at the Arboretum. This artists' invitational
arranged in collaboration with Arizona State Parks coincides with our annual
Fall Foliage Finale Festival. For a complete list of plein air events sponsored
by Arizona State Parks all around the Grand Canyon State, check out http://azstateparks.com/find/pleinair.html
Bring your art supplies and capture garden scenes or desert panoramas on canvas
alongside members of the Mesa Art League and Arizona Plein Air Painters. Check
out these plein air scenes posted at http://ag.arizona.edu/BTA/pleinairpainters.html
Fall Foliage Finale -- Thanksgiving Weekend
November 28 and 29 from 11:00 a.m. until 3:00 p.m. both weekend
days
Aspen and maple leaves have fallen in the San Francisco peaks and Catalinas
by mid-November, but the true grand finale of autumn foliage in Arizona is
right here at the Arboretum this month, with peak color typically during Thanksgiving
weekend. Invite family and visiting guests for a picnic and to celebrate autumn
color in our famous pistachio grove with spiced apple cider, live music and
other activities. Want proof of our
breathtaking color? Check out the gallery of autumn images on our
website! http://ag.arizona.edu/BTA/whatsnew/fallfoliage.html
