Catclaw Acacia
Fabaceae Acacia greggii, Bean Family ( fabaceae ), Catclaw Acacia. Also called wait-a-minute bush, uña de gato (cat’s claw), tésota, gatuño, palo chino (Chinese stick), tepame, algarroba, tear blanket, devil‘s claw, and Gregg’s catclaw.
A thicket forming shrub or small tree that can reach heights of about 30 feet. Cat‘s claw is a perennial with an average life span greater than 100 years.
The O’odham drink a tea from the roots for both stomach and kidney problems. The Seri and Yaqui use the wood in bows.
Height: About 6 - 15 feet. Can reach 30 feet.
Flowers: Pale yellow, sometimes cream colored; in a tight elongated, showy clusters, 2 to 3 inches long, fragrant, appearing in spring and early summer. Inflorescences, axillary spikes.
Blooming Time: April to June.
Stems/Trunks : An attractive gray shaggy - rough trunk; the stems have small curved thorns.
Leaves: The leaves are alternate, bipinnately compound, 1 to 2 inches long, with 1 to 3 pairs of major leaflets, 4 to 6 pairs of minor leaflets (1/4 inch long), dull green in color.
Seed Pod: A 3 to 6 inch long, ½ inch wide, flattened, very twisted legume, brown, maturing in mid to late summer.
Elevation: 2000 - 6000 Feet.
Habitat: Washes, flats and canyons below 6000', creosote bush scrub, pinyon-juniper woodland, deserts.
Miscellaneous: Flowering Photos Taken At Date Creek. June 13, 2003.
