Welcome! I'm in Tucson. We have been here for about 3 years Hubby is in the Air Force and I stay home to raise the kids. (one 12 and one 4.) I am also pretty new to the forum and have found everyone to be wonderful. We just bought a house so I also have a bunch of questions. Being from Illinois gardening in AZ. is much different.
Good luck.

Hi Marilyn (and Nina!)-

Always happy to see fresh faces (well, we know they're fresh under the smudges and dust!). Gardening here is a challenge and usually a 180 from whence you came, but it can be awfully rewarding, as well. This is a place you can celebrate your successes and find another gardener to commiserate with your not-so-successful endeavours.

Please take a look through the FAQs - there's a ton of info in there that has been asked over and over and can save you a lot of typing! Additionally, please be sure to note where other folks are from when you get advice from them - Phoenix is USDA zone 9a-b, sometimes 10?, typically Tucson is 8-9. But you'd be amazed at how much difference that can make in terms of timing, heat and frost. You might also want to find out your Sunset zone, some people use those, too, which you can find in the Sunset Western Gardening book - a *very* useful reference when picking out plants. There is a list of books in our FAQs, too.

Welcome again, hope to see both of you posting often!

Thanks for the welcome folks. I'm in Mohave County. Just south of Laughlin Nv. on the Colorado river. The high temps are really high but we are lucky to have not many below freezing lows in the winter. My hibiscus bush (one of my favorites) has already died this last summer and my cactus I was trying to grow died also. That tells you something...I can even kill a cactus in the desert...hehe.Right now I'm trying to find out what vegies I should start now from seed and their growing requirements. Thanks for the info and I'm looking forward to being part of this forum.
Marilyn

Have you been in touch with the Mohave Co. Cooperative Extension yet? They'll be able to get you started with ideas of when you can plant what, as well as what will survive your temps. The next best people to talk to are neighbors with thriving landscapes.

I'd bet (and of course, this is a shot in the dark) that your hibiscus and your cacti were planted too late to survive the blast furnace ... or just not established enough not to wilt and got too much water. It's hard to say, there's just some summers where tried 'n trues can't even get through. Don't be discouraged. Try to look around and see what does well there.

Welcome............did you water your cactus too much? That's about the only way to kill one. They thrive on neglect as do most desert plants.