Olneya tesota     
Desert ironwood   
Fabaceae Family     

Form: single or multistemmed tree, or large shrub
Seasonality: evergreen
Size: 15-30ft, spread 15-25ft; slow growth rate
Leaves: pinnately compound, oval leaflets; gray-green and thick
Flowers: 1/2in wide lavender flowers; short bloom period in early spring
Fruit: pod containing dark seeds, 2in long, 1/2 to 1/4in across
Stems/Trunks: thorns on twigs; gray trunk, more fissured with age
Range/Origin: throughout the Sonoran desert in elevations to 4000ft
Hardiness: to 20°, usually okay down to high teens

Olneya tesota

LANDSCAPE VALUE:

• specimen plant
• spring color
• needs to be trained up if used around walkways due to thorniness

CULTURAL REQUIREMENTS:

• Exposure: full sun or reflected heat
• Water: natural rainfall; supplemental water will increase growth rate and flowering
• Soil: tolerant, good drainage
• Propagation: seed, requires scarification (acid technique works well)
• Maintenance: moderate to high; pod and flower drop; requires training for single trunk form

NOTES:

large wild specimens can be salvaged, but (like Cercidium sp.) for best success, transplanting should be done in the peak heat of the year.

wood is dense, valued for carving and firewood

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This page was first created July 20, 2001 and last modified January 13, 2006.

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