The Tucson Mountain District is about 15 miles west of Tucson. Both of these districts represent the Sonoran desert and include magnificent stands of saguaro cacti. Saguaros are unique cacti. They have also been described as the monarch of the Sonoran Desert, as a prickly horror and as the supreme symbol of the American Southwest. Saguaros grow only in southern Arizona, in California along the Colorado River and in northern Mexico.
Protection is the key to the success of a saguaro.
Palo Verde trees and other shade plants protect a young saguaro. Saguaros can live up to 200 years and can reach the heights of 30 to 40 feet. They are slow growing. It takes about twenty-five years to grow, just two feet. The saguaro arms do not appear until the cactus is 75 years old.