image by: Hannah Ko
common name(s):
creosote bush, greasewood, chaparral, gobernadora, hediondilla (smelly)
phonetic spelling:
LAIR-ee-uh try-den-TAY-tuh
descirption:
the creosote bush is part of the Zygophyllaceae family, which consists of shrubs, herbs, and various trees. They grows natively in North America, specifically in California and Arizona, but originated from Argentina. It is an evergreen shrub growing to 3 to 10 ft tall, and the dark leaves are 7-18 millimeter long and 4-8.5 millimeter wide. In deserts such as the Mojave, Sonoran, and Chihuahuan, the creosote bush is responsible for a sweet and earthy smell that is described as “after-rain.”
dsitribution/location
Argentina, North America, deserts
environmental concerns
global warming increases the changes of droughts and desert fires, which dries up water holes and replaces slow growing trees with fast growing shrubs like these. This is bad because predators such as jack-rabbits, iguanas, and Chuckwallas are less likely to consume Creosote bushes because of their bitter leaves.
citation(s):
Where Does That After-Rain Smell Come From?
completelandscaping.comhttps://completelandscaping.com › rain-smell-come, https://palmdesert.ucr.edu/calnatblog/2023/02/21/how-did-creosote-bushes-come-desert, https://calscape.org/Larrea-tridentata-(Creosote-Bush)
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