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Creosote Bush
Author: Ray Bowers
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Species: Larrea tridentata |
Description:
Creosote bush is a 2m ( 6.56 ft ) evergreen shrub. The compound
leaves are opposite each other on the branch, and the two leaflets are united at the base. The resinous
yellow-green leaves have a distinct scent when crushed or wet. In the Chihauhaun desert creosote is said
to smell like rain.
Geographic range:
The creosote bush is found from southeastern California across
southern Arizona and New Mexico to western Texas, and south into Mexico. It also extends up the Rio
Grande valley to Albuquerque.
Habitat:
Creosote bush occurs in well-drained soils on slopes and plains and in
arroyos. It is found in areas that are up to 1,680 m ( 5,500 ft ) in elevation.
Reproduction and Development:
Creosote bush is a monoecious plant that blooms
from March to October closely tied to rainfall. The flowers are pollinated by a variety of insects.
The flowers have five yellow sepals, five yellow petals, and ten stamens. The fruit is a hairy capsule
with one seed. The flowers and mature fruit are often found together on the same plant.
Other info:
The chemicals in the creosote leaves keep most animals from eating
them, but some insects such as some grasshoppers and walkingsticks only feed on creosote. The name
gobernadora comes from dominance of creosote in some habitats. Some creosote plants have lived for
hundreds of years, when older parts of the plants die back, new growth develops from the roots.
References:
Allred, Kelly W. 2000. A Field Guide to the Flora of the Jornada Plain.
Las Cruces: NMSU Department of Animal and Range Science.
Bowers, Janice E. 1993. Shrubs and Trees
of the Southwest Desert. Tucson, AZ: Southwest Parks and Monuments Association.
Carter, jack L. 1997. Trees and Shrubs of New Mexico. Silver City, NM: Mimbres Publishing.
Kearney, Thomas H. and Robert H. Peebles. 1951. Arizona Flora. Berkeley, California: University of
California Press.
MacMahon, James A. 1987. Deserts. New York: Alfred A. Knoph, Inc.
Moore, Michael. 1989. Medicinal Plants of the Desert and Canyon West. Santa Fe, New Mexico: Museum of
New Mexico Press.
Wooton, E.O. and Paul C. Standley. 1915. Flora of New Mexico. Contributions from
the United States National Herbarium, Vol 19. Washington: Government Printing Office.
Related Terms: Chaparral, Gobernadora, Hedionilla