Environmental issues regarding Anza Borrego
Creosote is older than Redwoods and Bristlecones
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dsefcik Administrator Posts: 2609
2/27/2012
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An amazing article about Creosote
http://www.kcet.org/updaily/the_back_forty/commentary/in-the-old-growth-desert.html
From the last paragraph:
"If the 1200-year-old creosote where I sat were a redwood tree in a park it would have a plaque nearby, and travelers would come for miles to gaze at it reverently. If it were a coast live oak it would have died of immense old age a thousand years ago. If this creosote bush were a tree of like age and people came to cut it down for some industrial project, photos of it would flood the Internet with outraged commentary about our species' soulessness, and people would line up to be arrested in order to protect it. But it's a creosote bush, not a grand sequoia, and so it sits here in obscurity, scraping by in dry years like this one and putting out flushes of growth in the wet, and if we manage not to uproot it it may still be doing so when all memory of our fleeting civilization has been forever lost."
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http://www.sefcik.com
http://www.darensefcik.com
http://www.carrizogorge.com
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ziphius Posts: 911
2/27/2012
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That *is* an impressive feat for such an unprepossessing-looking little shrub. 1200 yrs, yikes. This thread got me curious about their root systems, which you might expect to go way DEEP. On the contrary:
The root system of creosotebush consists of a shallow taproot and several lateral secondary roots, each about 10 feet (3 m) in length and 8 to 14 inches (20-35 cm) deep. The taproot extends to a depth of about 32 inches (80 cm); further penetration is usually inhibited by caliche. Root growth is inhibited by high concentrations of salt (>10,000 ppm). Creosotebush roots require relatively large amounts of oxygen for growth. [source: http://mojavedesert.net/plants/shrubs/creosote.html ]
 Jim
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http://www.coyotelearning.org
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surfponto Administrator Posts: 1362
2/27/2012
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I like Chris Clarke's writing.
I bought his book "walking With Zeke" years ago which I really enjoyed.
That is amazing about the Creosote Bush!
dsefcik wrote:
An amazing article about Creosote
http://www.kcet.org/updaily/the_back_forty/commentary/in-the-old-growth-desert.html
From the last paragraph:
"If the 1200-year-old creosote where I sat were a redwood tree in a park it would have a plaque nearby, and travelers would come for miles to gaze at it reverently. If it were a coast live oak it would have died of immense old age a thousand years ago. If this creosote bush were a tree of like age and people came to cut it down for some industrial project, photos of it would flood the Internet with outraged commentary about our species' soulessness, and people would line up to be arrested in order to protect it. But it's a creosote bush, not a grand sequoia, and so it sits here in obscurity, scraping by in dry years like this one and putting out flushes of growth in the wet, and if we manage not to uproot it it may still be doing so when all memory of our fleeting civilization has been forever lost."
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https://www.anzaborrego.net/
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dsefcik Administrator Posts: 2609
2/27/2012
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He has a lot more good reading here http://www.kcet.org/user/profile/cclarke
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http://www.sefcik.com
http://www.darensefcik.com
http://www.carrizogorge.com
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