Brown's Ranch is located in the McDowell Sonoran Preserve. This area, once a working cattle ranch, has been subject to grazing and more recently, illegal dumping and off-road vehicle use. The City of Scottsdale, McDowell Sonoran Conservancy and the Center for Native and Urban Wildlife at Scottsdale Community College are working together to restore the native desert habitat and wildlife. The Brown's Ranch Restoration Project has included the planting of 200 mesquite and palo verde seedlings in an attempt to increase vegetation cover and plant diversity in order to stabilize the ecosystem and sustain natural wildlife populations.  The seedlings are from seeds collected on site and that were grown in SCC's plant propogation yard. Students and faculty have been monitoring the site and maintaining species inventory lists of organisms inhabiting the area. For more information, please visit the website of the McDowell Sonoran Conservancy.

Brown's Ranch today (showing wildflowers like Owl's Clover)