One of Tucson’s best Southwestern landscapes is at the airport. That’s right, the airport. Here’s how to find this urban treasure: If you’re taking the city bus (and, sorry to say, the drivers are on strike right now) catch the southbound #6 and get off at the park and fly lots just north of the…
After a three-month absence, an intermittent visitor has returned to the Southern Arizona desert. While commonly referred to as “rain,” this visitor is also referred to as “relief” and less flattering terms, the most common of which is, “Where in the #$%^& have you been?” The rain in my back yard was a welcome sight…
March 2019 update: This site was redesigned by the university. Robert A. Norwood is a professor in the University of Arizona College of Optical Sciences. My website design showcases his research, publishing, teaching, scholarly presentations, and patents. The home page features a collage of photos that I took of the sculpture, low water use landscaping, and…
When I was in my early twenties, I set the goal of bicycling through all 50 of the United States. I accomplished this over a 12-year period, and wrote and published two books about my experiences. My travels also took me into Canada. During a 1987 ride down the Icefields Parkway between Jasper and Banff,…
September 2015 update: The website has been redesigned since this post was published. Ted Parson is Joseph L. Sax Collegiate Professor of Law and Professor of Natural Resources & Environment at the University of Michigan. His research examines international environmental law and policy, the role of science and technology in public policy, and the political…
Throughout this month, Tucson’s Watershed Management Group has been celebrating the 40th anniversary of Earth Day. WMG’s Earth Month celebration included a block party, street painting, a bike tour of water harvesting sites, and several workshops. The last two Earth Month workshops were held in my neighborhood. A nearby neighbor had a culvert cistern installed,…
It’s been a very rainy winter here in Tucson. More than three inches of the wet stuff has fallen on my house and yard since January. We’re supposed to get more rain this weekend. In addition to bringing forth spring flowers like the ones on this front yard primrose… …the rains have also given rise…
This past weekend, I attended the annual Dillinger Days celebration in Downtown Tucson. This event commemorates the 1934 capture of "Public Enemy Number One," bank robber John Dillinger. The festivities centered around the Hotel Congress, where Dillinger and his gang of outlaws stayed when they first hit town. The hotel boiler caught fire, forcing the…
Throughout much of the continental United States, the big story is the cold and snow. Even though I live in the Arizona desert, I can relate. Just got back from visiting family in eastern Pennsylvania, where they were still talking about (and coping with) the two feet of snow that fell on December 19. That…
My front yard was graced (if you want to call it that) by a crumbling brick retaining wall. The wall had no seep holes, which meant that it was gradually being weakened by moisture. Time to tear down the wall. I wanted replace the old wall with something more attractive. Since I’m a member of…
This photo’s a true blast from the past. I took it back in 1981, while I was bicycling around the United States. While heading down the California coast, I stopped for an overnight in a state park south of Big Sur. The park offered many things to explore, including giant redwoods that I couldn’t begin…
This one’s from a late July 2008 visit to the Gulf Coast of Mississippi. Great time to be there and see the persimmons ripening…
When I bought this property in November 2004, it had no landscaping. There was crushed rock in the front yard and a formidable infestation of Bermuda grass in the back yard. I’ve done most of the landscaping work myself. This includes the landscape design, planting, weeding, and other maintenance tasks. To learn how to do…
Tucson’s summer monsoon season is in full swing. This is rendering swamp coolers ineffective and that’s bad news for some of us. (I have a swamp cooler.) However, the plants are welcoming the rain the only way they know how. They’re getting very green. And the cactii are plump again. Here’s how the plant life…
Tucson’s summer monsoon is in full swing, and that means thunderstorms. Big ones. They form quickly, and they can really pack a wallop. Yesterday afternoon, a real thumper rolled into town. Dumped .58″ of rain at my house, and that made my plants very happy. It also made for some interesting photographic opportunities. The festivities…
Late last month, I joined Judy Vorfeld and her brother, David Crook, for a couple of photographic days. Our first stop was the Desert Botanical Garden, which is located in the southeastern corner of Phoenix, Arizona. The cactus flowers were out in force… The saguaro cactii will bloom in a few weeks… Meanwhile, over at…
My recent trip to Pennsylvania featured just about every kind of weather imaginable. Most of my time there was snow-free. But not fog-free… And certainly not wind-free. Gusts of 40 mph and higher were recorded on New Year’s Eve. This had predictable effects on local trees and powerlines…
Another example of my ongoing quest to design with type and combine the result with photography. This promotional postcard offered a business tip (to hire me for Web and print design) along with a garden tip that plays off the image…
It is time for some cool fall weather here in Tucson. Today’s forecast high is 95 degrees. So, to help motivate some positive changes in our local weather, here’s an autumnal closeup from Pennsylvania…
You probably know that old song by heart. The one that goes, “Birds do it, bees do it, even sentimental fleas do it. Let’s do it, let’s fall in love.” Well, I’m here to tell you that the birds, bees, and fleas aren’t the only ones getting in on the action. The trees are doing…
I was a very lucky kid. One of my grade schools was set amidst an ecological paradise. I mean, this place had it all — tall trees, flowers, birds, and all sorts of furry creatures. The perfect place for a daydreaming, artistically-minded kid. I’ll admit to hearing more than a little bit of teacher flak…