Under gloomy and somewhat “leaky” skies on March 2, participants in the Botany Society Certification Course focused on cactus morphology, observing the various cactus forms in the Visitor Center Garden. Following that we had a lab session where we dissected three types of sunflower flower heads represented by a horticultural sunflower, Spanish Needle (Palafoxia arida), and a Desert Dandelion (Malacothrix glabrata) .

A PowerPoint presentation aided in understanding the complicated Sunflower family (Asteraceae) morphology.