Summer is here

We had an incredible spring in Southern Arizona with every plant, cactus, bush, and tree blooming this year. This is the beginning of the monsoon season with dry winds and temperatures above 100º F. Many of the plants which were filled with flowers a week ago have seed fuzz, seed pods, or fruit now.

Greasewood grows everywhere in this part of SOAZ (which is why so many streets, creeks, parks, bars, etc. are named greasewood). It had bright yellow flowers in the spring rains this year, but is covered with fuzz balls now in the fore summer. You would think that the dry winds would spread the fuzz balls. But the fuzz actually covers a fruit pod that is too heavy to be spread that way. The seeds inside the pod can germinate, but most of the time greasewood propagates by cloning itself!

Greasewood is also called creosote and yes it can be used to make wood-tar products, but it is not the same thing as coal-tar or oil-tar that is used in preserving wood or asphalt. Check out these sites: wry heat, NMSU, NPS, plants, & backyards.

Greasewood

The desert willow in my front yard had huge lavender blossoms this spring, but now has long green seed pods. More info here.

Desert willow

The saguaros seem to always bloom gorgeous white blossoms in May, rain or shine, and then in June have bright red fruit. More here.

Top of Saquaro cactus

And there is more...

The palo verde trees have pods. There is a mesquite-like tree, which has tan pods that dry and break open and drop their black and red seeds everywhere. Seems that every shrub and bush has pods.

It is an amazing place to live.