~Creosote Bushes At Sunset~

~Larrea trudentata~

I love these desert plants, so delicate yet so rugged. After a rain they put up tiny little yellow flowers, thousands of them on each bush. The plant gives off a very pleasant odor which contributes to my love of the Sonora Desert. The roots are very fine, as thin as human hairs, making it impossible to transplant, as all the roots break off and leave the plant rootless. They can grow as hight as 10 feet tall and 10 feet wide at the top of the plant. This desert chaparral also has the ability to secure more water for itself by inhibiting the growth of other nearby desert plants without killing them.

There is a creosote plant in the Mojave Desert that has a name, "King Clone". When the parent branches die "babies" sprout from its base, know as a clonal colony. Eventually these clones form a ever widening ring. This process usually starts when a plant is 30 to 90 years old. The "King Clone" creosote ring is a plant that is counted among the "oldest living organisms on Earth". It has been alive for over 11,700 years!

Oh yes, and they make a nice foreground design for another sunset!
Thanks for looking in, your always welcome around these parts, TucsonJim ;o)