Mojave Desert Discovery Garden
Welcome to the Mojave Desert Discovery Garden!
Visitor information:
The Mojave Desert Discovery Garden is open daily from sunrise to sunset.
Download a map of the garden. Plant identification markers display plant names in Serrano, English, Spanish, and scientific Latin.
Para español, por favor haga clic aquí.
Address:
Mojave Desert Land Trust, 60124 29 Palms Highway, Joshua Tree, California 92252
Telephone: 760-366-5440
Email: [email protected]
Accessibility:
There is one designated accessible parking spot closest to the garden. The garden paths are compacted dirt approximately 5 feet wide. Most of the garden features little to no inclines. Wheelchair users should note there is an upper level with an incline and slightly rougher terrain.
Garden rules:
- Enjoy the garden, but do not remove anything from it.
- Stay on paths, do not stray into garden beds.
- Leave no trace; please pack out what you brought in.
- Only trained service animals are allowed. No pets.
- Do not chase or feed the wildlife.
- It’s ok to touch plants, but please don’t pick leaves or flowers.
About the garden:
The Mojave Desert is a land of extremes—it is the smallest, driest, and hottest of North America’s deserts, and yet, it’s full of life. Situated between the Colorado Desert to the south and the Great Basin Desert to the north and east, the Mojave has a distinctive flora that includes the iconic Joshua tree and many other plants you will see in the garden.
Once an empty parking lot, the Mojave Desert Discovery Garden showcases the beauty and diversity of the Mojave Desert’s native plants and ecosystems. Themed gardens include an Ethnobotanical Garden, Palm Oasis, and pollinator gardens. Plant identification markers display plant names in Serrano, English, Spanish, and scientific Latin. The garden is open daily from sunrise to sunset.
We hope the garden will inspire residents and visitors alike to embrace the beauty and diversity of the Mojave’s native flora and incorporate sustainable landscaping materials and techniques in their own gardens.
The Mojave Desert Discovery Garden is a community effort in the making, for the benefit of all residents and visitors of the Morongo Basin. Thank you to the San Manuel Band of Mission Indians, Mojave Water Agency, and the Stanley Smith Horticultural Trust, for making this project possible.
MDLT acknowledges that the land where this garden is sited is the ancestral and unceded territory of the Maara’yam, commonly referred to as the Serrano people. We honor their presence and recognize their contributions as the first stewards of this land. We acknowledge that the Cahuilla and Chemehuevi peoples, as well as European settlers, intersected with Serrano peoples in these spaces. Our histories and stories are intertwined here, and by sharing them in culturally appropriate ways, we hope to honor and celebrate our indigenous neighbors and partners.
