Allenrolfea occidentalis

   

Allenrolfea occidentalis ( Iodinebush ) ( )

Chenopodiaceae

  • This evergreen bush or small shrub has succulent stems with bead-like green or reddish green joints and an alternate branching pattern. It is abundant at the desert edge of marshy and saline wet places throughout the Gulf of California. the seeds are reddish brown, about 0.8 mm long, and are produced in great quantity in mid-winter. A container the size of an ordinary work basket can be filled in about ten minutes by shaking the seed bearing branches into it. Food: the seeds were toasted, ground, and cooked as gruel, or mixed with turtle oil. The seeds were said to pop when toasted. Shelter: the branches wee used to provide shade and roofing for the brush house. The Supernatural: it was considered to be one of the first plants formed. It was one of several plants used in the smoking ceremonies. Tanning: because it was a soft plant, it was used to cover the ground beneath a deer hide to keep it clean during the tanning process. "People of the Desert and Sea, Ethnobotany of the Seri Indians".

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Lupinus arizonicus

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Asteraceae

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Asteraceae The most diverse and ecologically significant family of woody and semi-woody shrubs in creosote bush scrub is the sunflower family. Globally Asteraceae is second only to the Orchidaceae in number of species. Memers of the Asteraceae family are challenging to identify until one becomes familiar with flower structures. The essential feature defining the Asteraceae is the presence of composite flower heads that typically include numerous tiny flowers joined in what, at first, resembles a single large flower-as seen in a familiar sunflower. The typical composite flower head is composed of two types of flowers, although either one of these types may be absent in some genera. The outer whorl of flowers in a typical composite head has three petals fused to form what appears to be a single large petal, while the other two petals are absent. These fused petals of the ray flowers, or ligules, are the attractive structures for pollinators. Ray flowers are almost always female. The inne...
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Geraea canescens

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