How it beganThe Friends of Winchester, a neighborhood volunteer group, set out torevitalize their community park in June of 1999.With help from localgovernment and Southern Nevada Water Authority landscape rebates, theFriends of Winchester converted water-thirsty grass into a lush yet water-efficient landscape. In 2004 the Friends appealed to the Nevada Division ofForestry, which awarded them an Urban and Community Forest Grant. Thegrant provided funds for trees and woody shrubs to diversify the plantcommunity of the park and to develop an education plan for teaching theneighborhood about Winchester Garden, tree care, successful homelandscaping and related conservation issues.

Garden as community resource• Regional demonstration site of the Southern Nevada Water Authorityand the Nevada Division of Forestry.• Setting for studying and enjoying the plant diversity which has redefinedthe community, including drought tolerant trees, shrubs and ornamentalswhose showy foliage attracts birds, moths, bees and butterflies to theneighborhood.• Outdoor classroom for conservation agencies, garden groups, scouts,school children, teachers and home-schooling parents. Stop in the officeand pick up a field trip tote bag with study materials and equipment forobservation and hands on activities in the garden. Classroom kits on loaninclude children’s books on desert plants, insects and animals found in theWinchester Garden.• Partner for community service projects. Learn more about volunteeropportunities by calling the Friends of Winchester at 455-7340.

Things to do in the garden/urban forestENJOY THE SURROUNDINGSThis is a great place to walk and commune with nature. Relax and visit–peaceful, shady benches look on the garden and its bird population.Watchfor colorful butterflies and hardworking bees.

TEACH WITH THE GARDEN It is a primary resource for xeriscapeinformation and for maintaining our urban forest.

EXPRESS YOURSELF Take photographs, sketch, paint, sculpt, and write.The Garden inspires artists of all ages and talents.

VOLUNTEER Get your hands dir ty at the Friends of WinchesterGardening Days. Learn skills and help to maintain the garden at the sametime. If you would like to volunteer, please call Friends Chairman JennyCare, 456-0714 or Buffy Kilarski, 457-2422.

Use them to gather ideas for your own landscape.

1 Sound planning and design2 Limited turf islands3 Low-water plants4 Efficient irrigation system5 Organic soil improvements6 Surface mulches7 Proper maintenance

Nevada Division of Forestry Southern Regional Headquarters, 4747 WestVegas Drive, Las Vegas, Nevada 89108 (702) 486-5123. NDF is charged withimproving our city and community environments by increasing tree plantingand improving care and maintenance of existing trees. NDF promotes publicawareness about the important role trees and shrubs play in the quality oflife for all Nevadans.

Desert Demonstration Gardens, Las Vegas Valley Water District, 3701 W.Alta Drive, Las Vegas, NV 89153 (702) 258-3205. More than 1,000 speciesof plants on display. Adult education classes offered on xeriscape design,construction and maintenance. For more information visit the Gardens’calendar of events at lvspgardens.org

Acacia Demonstration Gardens, Acacia Park, 50 Casa Del Fuego,Henderson, Nevada. A wealth of drought-tolerant landscaping examples.Offers workshops on Mojave Desert landscaping and gardening.Visithttp://www.cityofhenderson.com/parks/parks/php/DemoGardens.php

Ethel M Botanical Cactus Garden, 2 Cactus Garden Drive, Henderson,Nevada 89015, (702) 435-2655. Over 300 plant species live on the CactusGarden’s four acres of drought-tolerant ornamentals, cacti, and othersucculents.

Las Vegas Arboretum, 4505 Maryland Parkway, PO Box 451013, Las Vegas,NV (702) 895-3392. The Arboretum is essentially the landscaped portion ofthe University of Nevada, Las Vegas campus. It includes 80 acres of trees,shrubs and turf as well as a two-acre xeric garden.

Regional demonstration gardensPalo Verde High School, 333 Pavilion Center Drive, Las Vegas, NV 89144Estes McDoniel Elementary School, 1831 Fox Ridge Drive, Henderson, NV 89014(702) 799-7788North Las Vegas City Hall Complex, Constitution Way and Civic Center Drive,NLV, Nevada 89030Grant Sawyer State Office Bldg., 555 E.Washington Ave., Las Vegas, NV 89101Community College of Southern NevadaHenderson Campus, 700 S. College Drive, Henderson, NV 89015West Charleston Campus, 6375 West Charleston Blvd., Las Vegas, NV Winchester Garden/Urban Forest, 3130 S. McLeod, Las Vegas, NV 889121

Winchester grant book list Butterflies and Moths by John FeltwellCactus Poems by Frank Asch and Ted LevinCactus Hotel by Brenda Bulbrson and Megan LloydDandelions by Kathleen Kudlinski and Jerome Wexler

Desert Dicoveries by Ginger Wadsworth and John CarrozzaThe Desert is My mother (El Desierto Es Mi Madre) by Pat Mora and

Daniel LechonThe Desert is Theirs by Bird Baylor and Peter ParnallDesert Voices by Byrd Baylor and Peter ParnallEarthworms by Kevin Holmes and Mark WetzelEarthworms by Elaine Pascoe, Nicole Bowman, and Dwight KuhnErosion by Charlie Winner and Cherie WinnerFairy Dusters and Blazing Stars: Exploring Wildflowers with Children

by Suzanne M. Samson and Illustrated by Preston NeelThe Gardener by Sarah Steward with Pictures by David SmallOne Green Mesquite Tree by Gisela JerniganFrom Seed to Plant by Gail Gibbons Seeds and Seedlings by Elaine Pascoe, Nicole Bowman, and Dwight KuhnTree (Eyewitness Books Series) by David Burnie

Sagebrush Checkerspot

Winchester Administrator Diane Bush works in the xeriscape garden with Friend Monte Fletcher.

Jenny Care, Friends ChairmanBridge in the peaceful desert garden

Rick Watson teaches tree planting. Newly xeriscaped section of the park Community volunteers pitch in.

Sagebrush Checkerspots Juniper Hairstreak Desert Marble

Seven principles of xeriscape

Desert gardening resources

Pancake Prickly Pear

TREESAcacia, Black-brushAcacia, Cat’s ClawAcacia, Gray ThornAcacia, ShoestringAcacia, SweetAcacia,TwistedAsh, RaywoodBottle TreeChaste TreeChitalpaDesert WillowEucalyptusFlame SummacHackberry,WesternLocust, SunburstJojobaJoshua TreeLacebark ElmLittle Leaf CordiaLittle Leaf AshMescal BeanMesquite, ChileanMesquite, ScrewbeanMesquite,Texas Honey Mesquite,VelvetPalo Verde, BluePalo Verde, Desert MuseumPalo Verde, MexicanPalo Verde, XhybridPine, AleppoFlame Sumac Texas EbonyZelkova, Japanese (Saw-leaf)

SHRUBSApache PlumeArizona RosewoodBird of Paradise-RedBird of Paradise-YellowBlue Potato BushBrittle BushBuckwheat, Flat-TopCalliandra, Fairy dusterCalliandra, Baja Fairy Duster Centennial Coyote BushCassia, FeatheryCassia, Silver Leaf

Plants of the desert garden/urban forestCACTUSDiamond ChollaPancake Prickly Pear

GRASSESBlue Grama GrassBlue FescueBull GrassDeer GrassMexican Feather GrassPampas GrassPurple ThreeawnRegal Mist

PERENNIALSAfrican Bush AsterAngelita Daisy, Perky SueArtemisia, Angel’s HairArtemisia, Silver kingBear GrassBlackfoot DaisyCoreopsis GrandifloraDesert MilkweedDesert ZinniaGauraGaura, Siskiyou PinkGazania,Yellow TrailingGlobe MallowMarigold, DesertMarigold, Mount LemonMexican Evening PrimroseParry’s PenstemonTree Bear GrassVinca, Dwarf PeriwinkleWall FlowerZephyranthes (yellow, white, pinkvarieties)

GROUND COVERDalea, Sierra GoldProstrate MyoporumProstrate AcaciaTrailing Indigo Bush

VINESCreeping FigCat Claw

Creosote BushDalea, Pink Indigo BushDesert FernDesert SpoonDwarf MyrtleFour-Wing Salt BushGreen SantolinaGolden EyeGopher PlantLantana, New GoldLavendarLemon BottlebrushMexican HoneysuckleMormon TeaOcotilloPurple Mexican SageQuail BushRed YuccaRosemary,Tuscan BlueRuellia BrittonianaRussian Sage Salvia ChamaedryoidesSalvia Clevelandii Salvia Dorii-Purple Desert SageSalvia Greggii-Autumn Sage-RedSalvia Greggii-Autumn Sage-SalmonSenna, Cassia-WiszlinzeniiSugar BushTecoma Stans, Gold StarTecoma Stans,Yellow BellsTecoma Capensis, CapeHoneysuckleTexas Ranger, Green CloudTexas Ranger, Silver CloudValentine BushWooly Butterfly Bush

SUCCULENTSAfrican AloeAloe VeraBanana YuccaBlue YuccaDark Green AgaveMojave YuccaOctopus AgaveRed YuccaTree Aloe

x e r i s c a p e

W INCHESTER PARK • C LARK CO UNTY • NEVA DA

Winchester Park and Community CenterClark County Parks and Recreation3130 S. McLeod Drive, Las Vegas, NV 89101 (702) 455-7340

PHOTOGRAPHYCover photo: Euphorbia Rigida (gopher plant).Thank you to Diane Bush and Debbie Hataburda (plant photos), Rick Watson (garden work photos) and a HarrisElementary School teacher (educational tree planting photos).The butterflies of theMojave are printed here with the permission of photographer Bob Gard, who holdsthe copyright (see more at http://members.aol.com/gardb/Mojave).

Funding for this project provided by Clark County Parks and Recreation, incooperation with The Friends of Winchester,The Nevada Division of Forestry, Urbanand Community Forest Program, and The Southern Nevada Water Authority.ClarkCounty is an equal opportunity service provider. (MARCH 2006)

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTSMyrna Williams, Commissioner, District EClark County Department of Parks and RecreationThe Southern Nevada Water AuthorityThe University of Nevada, Reno Cooperative ExtensionNevada Division of ForestryClark County Department of Neighborhood and Town ServicesBarrick Goldstrike MiningChaparral High School Honor SocietyGeorge E. Harris Elementary SchoolWilliam Beckley Elementary SchoolClark County Juvenile ServicesCambridge Community CenterClark County Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, and BrowniesCommunity Volunteers

SPECIAL THANKSSNWA Dave Hunt, Gail Mueller, Roy Thomas, Jim White, Mark Rex,Andrea Baker, Clayton Newberry, Patrick Watson, Rick WatsonMaster Gardeners Mel Hengen, Richard Leifried, Mary Laughton,Ann Edmunds, Richard CutbirthUniversity of Nevada-Las Vegas Cooperative Extension Angela O’Callaghan, Aggie Roberts Clark County Parks Larry Oswald, Director of Grounds Clark County Neighborhood and Town Services Russell Davis

Winchester Cultural Center

Desert garden and urban forestA cooperative venture supported and funded by the Friends ofWinchester, Clark County Department of Parks and Recreation, theSouthern Nevada Water Authority (SNWA), the Nevada Division ofForestry (NDF), University of Nevada, Las Vegas Cooperative Extension

N▲

3130 S. McLeod

WinchesterCulturalCenter

Find Your WayThe red outline on this aerial view of Winchester Cultural Center shows where morethan an acre of the 10-acre park has been converted from water-greedy turf to awater-efficient and drought-resistant desert garden/urban forest. Use the brochure’splant list and the garden’s labels to identify plants. If you see the garden in winter andare curious about foliage and blooms, visit the Desert Demonstration Garden web siteat lvspgardens.org.

Visit the Winchester Center xe riscape

Lemon Bottle Brush Dalea, Sierra Gold

Globe Mallow

Angelita Daisy

Sagebrush Checkerspot © Bob Gard, 2005