COLORADO CITY, Ariz. — Saturday morning at Cottonwood Park was buzzing with more than the usual weekend energy, as the Cox Family’s annual herb clearance sale drew crowds of gardeners and herb enthusiasts eager to bring home a piece of one of the region’s most beloved horticultural traditions.
The sale featured around 150 varieties of herbs spanning culinary, medicinal, and landscape uses. “Many types of culinary, medicinal and landscape herbs — about 150 varieties,” said Galeen Cox, who was on hand throughout the morning alongside her son Bryan to answer questions and help shoppers find the right plants for their gardens.
The festive atmosphere was enhanced by Eldon Hunt, a singer-songwriter from Enterprise, Utah, who performed original country songs for the crowd. A familiar face at the Cottonwood Park Farmers Market, Hunt’s music added a lively backdrop that complemented the morning’s community spirit. For Galeen, the setting made all the difference. “The sale went very well today,” she said. “Having it in conjunction with the farmer’s market created a festive atmosphere in a pleasant environment.”
The Cox family has been growing and selling herb plants since 1976, making them one of the region’s most enduring names in the nursery business. Throughout the planting season, they supply wholesale to retail nurseries across the area. The clearance sale tradition was born from a simple but meaningful idea. “The clearance sale tradition started when Katie Cox decided she wanted to get the remaining herbs into the hands — the gardens — of locals rather than going to waste,” Galeen explained.
Preparation for the sale is a well-practiced process. “We start advertising for the sale about three weeks prior,” Galeen said. “The selection of herbs is based on what is left after our wholesale sales drop off. The rest of the prep happens over the week before the sale.”
For the Cox family, Saturday was another successful chapter in a nearly 50-year story rooted in a love of herbs and community.
