The view from this hill has changed a lot over the years. In the 1930s, this was the most spectacular cactus forest in Arizona. But no one knew that these aging giants were near the end of their lives. Today we speculate that mild weather in the late 1800s may have nurtured this forest of giants. Those who created Saguaro National Monument in 1933 believed the forest would last forever.
In February 1937, a cold front brought record low temperatures to Tucson. A few years later saguaros began to die at an alarming rate. For a decade, scientists and the public struggled to deal with the "cactus blight." Following another killing freeze in 1962, researchers realized that temperatures below freezing for more than 20 hours could kill saguaros.
Before 1980 almost no young saguaros could be found here. Predictions of doom were made: "the last saguaro will die in the 1990s." In 1979, the National Park Service acquired all grazing rights in the Cactus Forest. After decades of trampling by cattle, young saguaros began to sprout under palo verde and mesquite "nurse trees." The trend toward renewal continues today.

Photo captions:
Saguaro in 1935
Saguaro in 1960
Saguaro in 1985

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