Nurseries of Flagstaff and Prescott, Arizona

I still have so many photos to share from our October trip to the desert Southwest, knowing this I seriously considered not posting pictures I took at these four nursery visits. But I love to visit nurseries in other cities; it helps me round out my idea of what the gardening climate is like there. Sometimes it makes me even more appreciative of what I’ve got at home, sometimes just the opposite. In case you enjoy it too I decided to go ahead and post them.

We start in Flagstaff, Arizona at Warner’s Nursery, and it’s not what you typically think of when you think of Arizona gardening. With all of its tall conifers Flagstaff looks a lot like Eastern Washington, where I grew up, it’s a USDA Hardiness zone 6a (-5 to -10 degrees F, yikes!). When I pulled up in front of the nursery I was blown away by the traffic. Their parking lot was full; I ended up parking on a side street and walking back to the nursery. For an excited moment or two I thought I’d discovered the center of the gardening world…then I realized it was simply a good old fashioned Fall festival complete with a petting zoo, kids in costume, mums and pumpkins.

Most of the outdoor plants were on sale.

There was a small indoor succulent section, even smaller than what I typically find here in Portland.

Onward to Flagstaff Native Plant and Seed…this was a completely different shopping experience. Much calmer, much less “Fall” color and more natural Fall beauty.

Obviously a more specialized destination.

Dasylirion wheeleri

Cerococarpus intricatus, Little Leaf Mahogany

Cerocarpus ledifolius, Curl-leaf Mountain Mahogany

Yucca baccata

That’s a huge rain barrel!

I really liked this place and wish I would have been visiting at the height of the season, rather than at the end.

This concludes the Flagstaff portion of our visit…

On to Prescott, AZ…or as they want to be known…

Strolling Cortez Street waiting for our take-out Thai I happened upon this happy window.

The fabulous curly cactus had this tiny black bloom…

Mortimer Nursery

I’d never head of Winter Fat (the plant) before this!

Pretty…

(sort of)

I’m not sure who disturbed who, I jumped and he hopped.

Freeze thaw damage already? Or perhaps just an accident?

On to Watters Garden Center…(still in Prescott)...

Where they were promising me I’d love to shop!

Bamboo Muhly (Muhlenbergia dumosa)

Pink Muhly Grass (Muhlenbergia capillaries)

False Red Agave (Beschorneria septentrionalis)

They must have had difficulty with overzealous nursery staff?

Soft Leaf Yucca (Yucca recurvifolia)

Aren’t the seeds of the Crocosmia beautiful? A much better Fall accent than Mums, in my opinion.

Okay I think that's it for overtly "Fall" nursery vacation images, from here-on-out it's all sunny desert all the time! I hope you enjoyed your quick four nursery tour.