As the city expands outward, pushing the desert farther and farther away from us urban-dwellers, the Tucson Botanical Gardens becomes an increasingly desirable place to bond with nature. Not only do the Tucson Botanical Garden include more wildflowers, succulents, cacti and trees than you can shake a stick at; the good folks there offer ideas and classes on how to appreciate and conserve them (and the water that sustains them, and the species that eat and live in them).
Runners up:
2. Tohono Chul Park
7366 N. Paseo Del Norte
742-6455; tohonochulpark.org
3. Reid Park Rose Garden
Country Club Road, just north of 22nd Street
791-4873; www.tucsonaz.gov/parksandrec/
specialplaces.php