Cousins Tanisha Tucker Lohse and Maria Francisco set off from their desert camp around dawn on most early summer days, in ...

The saguaro cactus is the iconic plant of the Arizona borderlands, and in June and early July, its thorn-covered small fruit ...

The saguaro cactus is the iconic plant of the Arizona borderlands, and in June and early July, its fruit ripens. For the ...

Over the last five years, researchers have found that the death rate for saguaros in the Phoenix area jumped from 1% to 2% ...

The sacred ritual of collecting fruit from towering cactuses is enjoying a renaissance as many seek to protect their ...

The saguaro cactus is the iconic plant of the Arizona borderlands, and in June and early July, its fruit ripens. For the ...

An umbrella is used to catch fresh fruit picked from a saguaro cactus during a harvest season day by the Tohono Oʼodham people in Saguaro National Park near Tucson, Ariz., on Tuesday, June 24, 2025.

Tanisha Tucker Lohse, of the Tohono O'odham nation, picks a ripe saguaro cactus fruit during a harvest day in Saguaro National Park near Tucson, Ariz., on Monday, June 23, 2025.

The saguaro cactus is the iconic plant of the Arizona borderlands, and in June and early July, its fruit ripens. For the Tohono O'odham Nation, harvest time for the 'bahidaj,' or saguaro fruit, is ...

From saguaro fruit to New Year’s wine. Starting in May, O’odham families check the saguaro buds. The fruit is usually ripe by mid-June, opening a one-to-four week harvesting window until the fruit is ...