Every year at this time, gardens are at the forefront of my world for a few reasons. First, we are in production of the annual issue that you are holding right now. Second, I am scouting dozens of Valley homes for consideration for our garden tour and, concurrently, I am looking at properties to photograph for upcoming feature stories. 

This is my favorite time of year. 

Earlier this week, we photographed a historically significant home at the base of the McDowell Mountains. I first visited early last summer, and we had decided to wait to shoot it the following spring, when its natural desert setting is at its most spectacular. Maybe it was all the rain we had in the fall, maybe it was our mild winter, but Mother Nature had different plans. The penstemon were going wild and there was a subtle chorus of lantana, but the waves of wildflowers and blankets of yellow brittlebush we had planned on were mostly a no-show. 

I am by no means complaining. While a riot of seasonal color would have made for some fine images, the landscape, as we found it, was just as gorgeous—but in a different way.
I wandered the grounds as our photographer set up his first shot and I was filled with the deep serenity that the desert has given me since I first encountered it. 

Our collective landscape can still surprise and awe me after three decades as a proud Phoenician. On the pages ahead, we have endeavored to share just a few of the myriad possibilities of what an Arizona garden can be. We could never capture it all in one issue, but we hope that you will be inspired to go outside, breathe deeply, appreciate the details and give thanks for all we can experience, explore and celebrate every day. 

John Roark
Editor-in-chief

We hope you will join us for the Phoenix Home & Garden 2026 Garden Tour on Saturday, April 11.
For tickets and more information, visit phgmag.com/gardentour