Arizona Wild Flowers
Wildflower Pictures And Photos

Elephant Tree, Bursera microphylla. At Glendale Xeriscape Demonstration Garden.
Also Called Elephant Tree, Pachycormus discolor. Easily Mistaken For Bursera microphylla. At Phoenix Desert Botanical Garden.

Elephant Tree, Bursera microphylla	Elephant Tree, Bursera microphylla

Elephant Tree Bursera microphylla, Torchwood Family: ( Burseraceae ), Elephant Tree. Also called: Torote or Copal. Considered a Xeriscape Plant, the Elephant Tree is the rare, aromatic, tropical plant which is very susceptible to cold. They have short, stout, tapered trunks and branches which are reminiscent of elephants legs and trunks. They have an open, but sparse crown, and are small growing to a height of about ten feet. However, in Mexico the trees reach up to about fifty feet. The record tree for Arizona was found in the Tinajas Altas Mountains of Yuma County. Two other plants in the Burseraceae family are frankincense (Boswellia) and myrrh (Commiphora). The resin of the Elephant Tree can be collected and dried for use as an inscense that is similar to myrrh. Height: Up to 10 feet tall in Arizona, up to about 1 feet in diameter; with a short trunk and a sparse crown. Flowers: Five petaled, creamy - white, about 1/4-inch wide, appear in the early summer. The sepals are tiny and green, and the petals are about 1/8" long. Flowering Time: May - July. Depending upon the elevation. Leaves: Alternate once - pinnately compound, aromatic with a scent of camphor, and each leaf has 7 - 33 oblong - linear glabrous leaflets to 3/8" long. Bark: Gray-white bark. Reddish in some cases. Fruit: A small 1/4 - inch-long red fruit appears in the late fall. It has a curving, elliptic stalk and contains one yellow nutlet. It has an unusual odor. Found: On the rocky, dry slopes of desert mountains. Elevation: 0 - 2,500 Feet. Habitat: Native of the Sonoran Desert of southwestern Arizona, extreme southern California, and northwestern Mexico. Miscellaneous: The elephant tree isa protected species in Arizona. Photos Taken at Glendale Xeriscape Demonstration Garden, February 12, 2008.

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Back To DeLange Home Page Images And Text Copyright George & Audrey DeLange.