Friday, April 6, I had the good fortune to visit the Mesa Community College Rose Garden.  The Garden is sponsored by the Mesa-East Valley Rose Society, and was designed by LeRoy Brady, who has done much of the fabulous landscaping along Arizona highways.  A full history of the Garden can be found here.

In spite of the 95 F degree temperature, the roses looked fresh and beautiful. In the High Desert roses won’t be blooming for at least another month, but in Phoenix, “The Valley of the Sun,” they were in full bloom. The Garden was an oasis on a very warm day.

Click on thumbnails for a larger view.

Overview of general area

An oasis in the low desert

Berries ‘n’ Cream

Bed featuring Camara

Camara

Oranges ‘n’ Lemons

The current major project is the Veterans Garden.  This is the newest part of the Garden, and it is lovely.  I thought it was complete.  The next day I had a chance to talk with LeRoy, who explained that there are many more plans for the Veterans Garden.  I’ll post some of the photos I took on this trip, and will try to keep the progress updated.

Portion of Veterans Garden

Climbing rose, America, on wall of Veterans Garden

Climbing rose, Fourth of July, on wall of Veterans Garden

This beautiful public rose garden is still evolving. The Mesa-East Valley Rose Society in conjunction with Mesa Community College continues to build an amazing oasis in the desert.