Flashlight Nights

Escape the heat and explore the Garden after dark with family and friends! Discover the Garden’s five thematic trails, encounter desert creatures, and immerse yourself in the captivating nighttime ambiance with cool drinks and treats. Enjoy access to food trucks and Breezy Pops for sale. Garden will be selling s’mores and drinks and more from their pop-up bars serving non-alcoholic and adult beverages.

Join us for special theme nights in June:

Science Night | June 22  | 5 – 8 p.m.
Southwest Urban Corridor Integrated Field Laboratory (SW-IFL)  will be onsite inviting the public to delve into its groundbreaking research focused on combating extreme heat across Arizona. Attendees can engage with SW-IFL researchers, explore scientific equipment and participate in interactive demonstrations firsthand. Supported by funding from the U.S. Department of Energy, the SW-IFL is a collaborative partnership among three Arizona public universities, two national laboratories and industry researchers.

Pride Night | June 29
Chalk Activity | Express yourself and decorate canvases with bright colors using Glow Chalk.
Kid’s Hands-on Activity | Add life to our rainbow snake by painting a unique rock. Plus, enjoy complimentary books and a Storytime.
Glow Party | Enjoy food, drink, a live DJ and LED visual performance at our party complete with UV lights and accessories.
Marketplace | Support LGBTQIA+ vendors and artists as they share art like jewelry, prints and tie dye apparel available for purchase.

All Flashlight Nights events include the following activities:

Book Giveaway | Browse books and take one home for free! One per guest.

Moon Sculptures | Observe the shapes and textures of the moon, and identify a crater’s impact shape, size and impact rays. Plus, create a moon sculpture with clay to take home.

Constellation Cups | Create constellations with a paper cup to project and view.

Star Gazing | Discover stars, constellations, planets, moons and other astronomical objects in the night sky with telescopes.

Mesquite Pitch Painting | Try painting using mesquite pitch paint.

Prickly Pear pop-up | Learn about the many uses of prickly pear cactus including food for people and animals, a host plant for insects, and even cactus leather used in the fashion industry.  Plus, taste a prickly pear cactus pad (nopalito).

Magnificent Mesquites | Touch, grind and taste mesquite flour made from the seedpods of a mesquite.

Making Tracks | Explore tracks of animals that live in the Sonoran Desert and create your own tracks using stamps and water.

Desert Critters | Encounter snakes, tarantulas, scorpions and other desert critters general questions.

Super Saguaro | Explore this desert icon, see and touch a saguaro skeleton, learn about how it is an important resource for various desert wildlife and how it has evolved as a plant to live in the desert. Guests will learn how saguaro fruit is harvested.