The iconic saguaro reaches for the sky.  A prickly pear cactus produces delicious edible fruit.  An agave sends up a 12-foot-high flower stalk to create future agaves.  Using nature's perfectly engineered spines, Chollas “jump” onto a passing host.  Life-long naturalist, Boyce Thompson Arboretum docent, and author Jim Shepherd talks about Sonoran Desert plants, plant relationships/adaptations, survival techniques, keystone versus indicator species, medicinal benefits, and wildlife relationships in a one-hour program called “Unique Plants of the Sonoran Desert and Arid Lands.”  Shepherd’s book, "A Walk In The Wallace Desert Garden: Discovering Desert Secrets," can be purchased after the program, and he will be happy to sign it.  The book profiles 48 arid-land plants, featuring full-color photos, ranging from succulents to euphorbias to trees.  It’s a great guide to the namesake Boyce Thompson Arboretum trail and a handy reference book on the Sonoran Desert and arid land plants.