Trees Found in Our Desert

Creosote

Velvet or Honey Mesquite?? Velvet Mesquite Bark dark brown to gray. Spines whitish-gray and straight. Fruit in pods that start out green and turn yellowish-brown. Difficult to differentiate from Honey Mesquite Velvet Mesquite tends to have 4 versus 2 primary leaflets and tends to have duller green leaves compared to Honey Mesquite

Velvet Mesquite

Honey Mesquite characterized by 8-inch, bean-like pods and 3-inc spines occurring at large nodes on branches  smooth, brown bark that roughens with age narrow, bipinnately compound leaves 2 to 3 inches long are sharply pointed leaves yellowish green in color with oblong leaflets 1/8" wide and 1 1/4" long fruit is a flat, narrow, yellow-green pod up to 8 inches long and ending in a point blooms in May displaying 1/4-inch long fragrant, creamy yellow flowers in narrow 3-inch clusters

Honey Mesquite  

Catclaw Acacia Bark gray to brown and scaly. Spines brown to gray, curved and appear singly along branches. Leaves are bipinnately compound Fruit is like a flattened string bean

Whitethorn Acacia Bark reddish-maroon (making it fairly easy to pick out even at a distance) to gray. Leaves are bipinnately compound. Spines long, straight, and white (on new growth) or absent (on old branches). Fruit is a reddish-brown pod.

Desert Ironwood Tree up to 35' high. Bark is gray to dark gray and becomes fissured with age (wood inside is beautiful chocolate brown).   Spines brown-tipped and slightly curved. Leaves are simple pinnately compound and are a bluish-green that makes them appear darker than most other trees. Fruit are a brown, hairy pod.

Foothills Paloverde Blue Palo Verde Large shrub or small tree to 15-40' high. Bark yellowish-green and smooth. Spines are absent but branches terminate in sharp point. Leaves are bipinnately compound, with four or more secondary leaflets per primary leaflet (versus three or fewer in Blue Paloverde). Fruit is a flat pod starting green and turning yellow.  Tree to 30-40' high. Bark bluish-green and smooth. Spines are small (0.25"), green, and straight. Leaves are bipinnately compound, with three or fewer secondary leaflets per primary leaflet (versus four or more in Foothills Paloverde). Fruit is a flat pod starting green and turning yellow. Blue Paloverdes need more water thus tend to be more restricted to washes and roadsides

Palo Verdes   Blue Palo Verde   Foothills Palo Verde

Plants Found in Our Desert

Triangleleaf Bursage

Desert Hackberry Shrub to 20' Evergreen, spiny Flowers whitish to 1/16" wide followed by yellowish-orange berry in the fall. Leaves simple, smooth-edged (sometimes toothed), oval to elliptical to 1.5" long

Desert Senna (Cove's Cassia)

Desert Unicorn Plant (Golden Devil's Claw)

Desert Tobacco

Jimson Weed

Cacti Found in Our Desert

Many Stages of Saguaro

Barrel Cacti Varying Flower Colors

Cholla

Pincushion Cactus

Christmas Cactus