White Ratany, Krameria grayi
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| White Ratany, Krameria grayi. Flowering Photos Taken April 23, 2008. Mayo Clinic Scottsdale Nature Trail. |
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| White Ratany, Krameria grayi | White Ratany, Krameria grayi |
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| White Ratany, Krameria grayi | White Ratany, Krameria grayi |
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| White Ratany, Krameria grayi | White Ratany, Krameria grayi |
White Ratany White Ratany is a perennial, low and densely branched, deciduous shrub up to about 3 feet high and 3 feet wide that is common in desert scrub throughout the Trans-Pecos, and west to California and south into Mexico. It has slender, thorny stems that are more noticeable than its tiny leaves. When they emerge they are whitish and hairy and then they mature to be smooth and gray. The whitish color gives it the common name of White Ratany. Its small, reddish-purple flowers are borne profusely in the late spring and also in the fall after the summer monsoons. K. grayi and K. erecta look almost the same, but K. grayi has recurved sepals, a separate petal, and inside the flower there are orange gland - like petals. Krameria is very drought resistant and it is an excellent Xeriscape plant. However, it is a partial root parasite of other nearby plants. So try not to plant too close to other plants. I have found it to be OK about two feet away from neighboring plants. The root system is shallow, with 40 percent of the root mass in the top 4 inches of the soil, and spreads horizontally and radially. Ratany offer their bee pollinators oil instead of nectar. The oil bees (Centris) acquire nectar from other plants, but scrape off the oil from ratany to combine with pollen from other plants to feed their larvae. White Ratany has barbs only on the tips of its fruit spines, whereas Range Ratany (K. erecta) has barbs along the entire fruit spine. The Papago Indians used an infusion of the twigs externally for treating sore eyes and internally for dysentery. The roots provided them with a red dye for wool and other materials. The dye was also used as an ink. White Ratany provides thermal cover for rattlesnakes (Crotalus spp.) and the western whiptail (Cnemidophorus tigris) [25]. Small mammals, such as the Bailey's pocket mouse (Perognathus baileyi), use White Ratany for hiding cover. White Ratany is an important forage species for all classes of livestock and for deer (Odocoileus spp.) It also provides cover for small mammals and reptiles. Palatability of White Ratany is rated fair to good for cattle and sheep. Mule and white-tailed deer browse White Ratany year-long with seasonal peaks. Mule deer peak use is from February to April and from August to October, and white-tailed deer peak use is from August to October. Range Ratany and White Ratany look almost the same. The seed pods of Range Ratany have spines along the entire length and White Ratany does not.
Height: Up To About 6 inches - 36 inches Tall.
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