New Mexico State University anchors the southern end of Las Cruces and gives the city much of its cultural and intellectual life. The campus is pleasant to walk — a mix of Spanish Colonial Revival buildings from the early 20th century and more recent additions — and the university's museums, galleries, and performance spaces are open to visitors. The NMSU Art Museum on the main campus has a small but quality collection of contemporary art and rotating exhibitions.
The university's research farms and greenhouses, spread across the southern edge of campus, are worth a look if you have an interest in agriculture. This is where the chile varieties are developed, the pecan trees studied, and the desert landscaping plants tested for drought tolerance. It is a reminder that NMSU is primarily a land-grant university with deep roots in the agricultural economy of the Mesilla Valley.
The campus grounds include a duck pond and mature trees that make it a good spot for a walk on a hot afternoon. The university also runs an observatory — the Tortugas Mountain Observatory — on a hill south of campus, with occasional public viewing nights.