Walk
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Arizona Mesquite
(Prosopis velutina)
IN OPEN AREA SOUTHEAST OF OLD MAIN
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| Walk
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Arizona Mesquite |
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(Prosopis velutina) |
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IN OPEN AREA SOUTHEAST OF OLD MAIN |
| 28 | This venerable velvet mesquite is typical of the great specimens that once dominated the forest near San Xavier Mission south of Tucson. Mesquites provide lumber, cabinet wood and fuel to Arizonans. |
| In Depth | Prosopis velutina, Arizona Mesquite |
| Location: IN OPEN AREA SOUTHEAST OF OLD MAIN | |
| Family: Fabaceae | |
| Distribution: common in southern Arizona and Sonora, up to 1400 m (4600 ft) in elevation | |
| Habitat: along watercourses in the desert, sometimes forming woodlands in slightly mountainous areas | |
| Habit: small to large tree | |
| Flowering: spring, often again in summer | |
| Natural History Notes: Prosopis is a genus of spiny trees and shrubs found in warm regions, primarily of the New World. The paired spines, positioned at the base of leaves, may serve to protect the mesquites from large herbivores. The historical expansion and reduction of the velvet mesquite woodlands, up desert mountain sides and back down, as now, to primarily watercourses, is documented for the last 12,000 years using evidence from pack-rat middens. Pack-rats carry many plant parts back to their nest; under the right circumstances these clues to historical plant distributions can then be preserved for thousands of years, as has been the case for velvet mesquite. Velvet mesquites flower in the spring and may flower again in the summer, if the rains are sufficient. The flowers are tiny, but a few hundred are produced together in a spike, offering a rich nectar resource for insect visitors. The fruit of the mesquite is a dry pod, and is enjoyed by livestock who then spread the seeds. This and the supression of fire have encouraged the mesquite to expand into grasslands, transforming them into woodlands. |