Looking Back—Looking Forward

BY LYNNE NEMETH EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

All of us at Boyce Thompson Arboretum are so grateful for the support of our members, donors and visitors! Thanks to you—and DC 10s dropping slurry at the last possible moment during the Telegraph Fire—we made it through 2020-2021. It was a season of COVID-19 and fire, and yet we accomplished so much. We adapted to the pandemic by offering web-based programming, masking up, and staying open so that visitors could experience the beauty of Boyce Thompson Arboretum. We have heard from members and visitors that BTA offers a place of refuge and peace, and also a safe place during this time of COVID.

We renovated our 97-year old Smith greenhouses, opened the Wallace Desert Garden, began Legume Garden restoration—and welcomed close to 120,000 visitors for the first time in BTA’s history, most from Arizona. In short, in spite of all the difficulties, we had a great year.

WELCOME TO BTA’S 2021-2022 SEASON

As we gear up for 2021-2022, you will continue to see enhancements all over the gardens. You will see the newly restored Smith display greenhouses, Visitor Center renovations—and new staff on site. Two programs we began last season, Arb After Hours and Walk on the Wild Side, which features family friendly activities, will continue. We expect to see increase visitation as our “snowbirds” and Canadian members and friends come back to Arizona.

We look forward to offering you “members only” activities and new events for the public this year. And stay tuned for updates on Master Planning.

SUSTAINABILITY AND CLIMATE CHANGE

After years of drought, cataclysmic fires and recent flooding, the effects of the climate change have become distressingly obvious. Botanical gardens around the globe are confronting the obvious: mitigation isn’t going to save us, but adaptation might. How do we adapt to rising temperatures and drought? What can we do, at BTA, to help our plant collections and native wildlife survive? You have already heard about our irrigation renovation. Conserving water is one obvious thing we can do. That will involve water catchment, irrigation fixes, and grey water use.

In the coming year, we will be exploring the issue of climate change adaptation and possible solutions and actions we can take to plan for a drier and hotter future here in the Sonoran Desert.