Just Have to Share
It's really easy to miss the sign, especially when trying to avoid rear-ending someone in busy weekend traffic. I almost drove right past it. My friend saw it first, just off to the right, planted in the wide dirt shoulder of N. Thornydale Road. "Bach's Cactus Nursery" it proclaims, and a white arrow points down a narrow, dusty strip of dirt road. The road winds through Palo Verde and Mesquite trees and some huge sections of petrified wood, wraps around a couple of older greenhouses and past some yellow, dirt-moving equipment, and finally curves into a one of two smallish dirt parking lots.
I had no idea what to expect and was totally thrilled by what I found. I could hardly wait to get out of the car. There must have been ten or more large greenhouses within view. Every cleared inch of dirt was filled with dozens--no, hundreds--of pots of cacti and succulents; some huge, some blooming with saucer-sized red flowers, some covered in cottony white hair and tiny blossom, some daring you to come close to their spines, others smooth and bumpy and inviting. The place is other-worldly. For me it's plant heaven. And laugh if you will, but the vibes on those grounds were wonderful: peaceful, calming, and exhilarating all at the same time.
People are so in love with this nursery, the web page below was created by one of their customers after a visit in 2008, and the other is a collection of pictures on Flickr. You have to take a minute to scroll down through the photographs. I'm still kicking myself for not having my camera with me.
www.tucson-gardener.com/Bachs/Bachs.html
www.flickr.com/photos/7603557@N08/sets/72157600246849004/
I can't believe I have known about this cactus farm for twenty years, and have lived less than two miles away for the past eleven years, but this was my first visit. And I'm a plant person. I've just never been much of a cactus/succulent person. Meet 'me', the convert. If I could, I would redesign my entire backyard to incorporate some of the stunning specimens I saw on Saturday. I'm going back. I've already scoped out a few areas in my yard where I could tuck in a specimen or two (or three).
This is what I did come home with: a colorful Mexican turtle pot, holding a cactus, and another mammillaria ready to be transplanted (in the black plastic pot).
I had no idea what to expect and was totally thrilled by what I found. I could hardly wait to get out of the car. There must have been ten or more large greenhouses within view. Every cleared inch of dirt was filled with dozens--no, hundreds--of pots of cacti and succulents; some huge, some blooming with saucer-sized red flowers, some covered in cottony white hair and tiny blossom, some daring you to come close to their spines, others smooth and bumpy and inviting. The place is other-worldly. For me it's plant heaven. And laugh if you will, but the vibes on those grounds were wonderful: peaceful, calming, and exhilarating all at the same time.
People are so in love with this nursery, the web page below was created by one of their customers after a visit in 2008, and the other is a collection of pictures on Flickr. You have to take a minute to scroll down through the photographs. I'm still kicking myself for not having my camera with me.
www.tucson-gardener.com/Bachs/Bachs.html
www.flickr.com/photos/7603557@N08/sets/72157600246849004/
I can't believe I have known about this cactus farm for twenty years, and have lived less than two miles away for the past eleven years, but this was my first visit. And I'm a plant person. I've just never been much of a cactus/succulent person. Meet 'me', the convert. If I could, I would redesign my entire backyard to incorporate some of the stunning specimens I saw on Saturday. I'm going back. I've already scoped out a few areas in my yard where I could tuck in a specimen or two (or three).
This is what I did come home with: a colorful Mexican turtle pot, holding a cactus, and another mammillaria ready to be transplanted (in the black plastic pot).