ABOUT THE SIERRA: Bio-cultural RESEARCH:
Plant Description, Habitat Associations, Medicinal Properties And Community Knowledge In The Sierra Tarahumara.

Fiona Land

Acacia cochliacantha

Vase-shaped shrubs or small trees, with many straight branches. Leaves 5-15 cm, pinnae 7-25 pairs, leaflets numerous. Foliage gradually drought deciduous, leafing-out with Summer rains. Bark dark brown, relatively smooth. Foliage feather-like. Larger spines are boat-shaped. Flowers yellow-orange, in rounded heads. Flowering June-September.

Slopes, valleys, plains, arroyos, and disturbed habitats; thorn-scrub, tropical deciduous forest, margins of Sonoran desert-scrub, and occasionally in grass-land. Probably spread by cattle. An excellent source of firewood and also construction. The pods are eaten by burros and mules, and formerly by the Guarijío people. Burros often pull-off long strips of bark to eat. In fall, the dry hill-sides are often red-brown, due to masses of ripening pods (Felger).

Acacia constricta

Usually shrubs, sometimes small trees to 5 m. Bark smooth, red-brown, becoming gray with age and flaking. Spines stipular, reaching 1-3 cm, paired, straight and terete, usually white, or sometimes absent. Leaves Winter decidous and tardily drought deciduous; new leaves appearing in Spring; leaves 2-7 cm, leaflets many. Flowers bright yellow, in rounded heads. Pods 4.5-13.5 cm, reddish, moderately flattened, constricted between seeds. Flowering in warmer months, especially with Summer rains.

Slopes, valleys, bajadas, plains and arroyos; Chihuahuan and Sonoran desert-scrub, thorn-scrub, and grass-land. Through much of arid and semi-arid Mexico to Puebla.

To avoid the danger of a late Spring frost, Sonora and Arizona farmers often waited until the White-thorn leafed-out before planting corn. Mequite occasionally makes a mistake and leafs-out before the last frost, the White-thorn is more reliable (Felger).

Acacia farnesiana

Shrubs to small trees, generally up to 10 m, or rarely 15-18 m. Spines reaching 2-4.5 cm, stipular, paired, white, straight and terete. Foliage evergreen to tardily drought deciduous and Winter deciduous. Leaves 2.5-5.3 cm, pinnae 2-4 pairs, leaflets many. Flowers bright yellow-orange, in globose heads, with a strong and far reaching sweet fragrance. Pods 4-7.5 cm, indehiscent with pulpy mesocarp, straight or slightly curved, approx. 1 cm thick and terete, seeds crowded in two rows. Flowering Nov-April.

Slopes, canyons, valleys, plains, and arroyos; Sonoran desert-scrub, thorn-scrub, tropical deciduous forest, and grass-land. State-wide, except the North-west and North-east corners. Especially common in disturbed habitats such as road-sides and agricultural and heavily grazed areas. Perhaps not native to North-America.

An essential oil from the flowers was an important ingredient in perfumes (Felger). The flowers of this tree are made into a wash to treat eye-infections. The bark is taken as a tea to counteract Scorpion stings. (Enrique Salmon).

Acacia greggii

Irregularly branched shrubs or trees often 2-8 m. or more. Trunk usually crooked, heart-wood reddish, bark rough and dark-gray. At least some branches armed with small, sharp, recurved, and usually laterally compressed prickles scattered along the stems between the nodes. Young twigs, leaves, and inflorescences moderately to densely pubescent with short hairs. Leaves tardily Winter deciduous. Leaves 2.5-3.5 cm, pinnae 2 or three pairs, leaflets 4-6 (7) pairs per pinnae. Flowers cream-colored, fragrant, in dense, cylindrical spike-like racemes. Pods 6-15 x 1-2 + cm, flattened, ribbon-like, usually curved or curled, constricted between some seeds but usually not all, reddish to tan. Flowering April-June; pods in June.

Slopes, canyons, flats and arroyos; Sonoran and Chihuahuan desert-scrub, and grass-land; common along desert-washes (Felger).

Acacia pennatula subsp. pennatula

Mostly large shrubs, sometimes small trees to approximately 7 m. Bark light to dark brown or red-brown, finely to coarsely granulated. Young twigs, leaf-stalks inflorescences, and peduncles with dense short, spreading, white to yellow hairs; leaflets sparsely hairy. Twigs mostly with painfully sharp, stout, paired stipular spines reaching 1-2 cm. And oval in cross-section. Leaves nearly evergreen or winter-deciduous, 8.5-25 cm; Pinnae often 20-62 pairs; leaflets numerous. Flowers bright yellow, fragrant, in rounded heads often 1.5 cm. Wide. Pods 7.5-13.5 x 1-2 cm, indehiscent with mealy mesocarp, thick and moderately flattened, dark red-brown. Flowering May-October
Slopes and valleys; upper thorn-scrub, upper tropical decidous forest, oak woodland, and lower pine-oak woodland. Wide-spread, especially in the lower oak zone and its ecotone with thorn-scrub or tropical decidous forest, and often abundant in disturbed habitats.

The Guarijío ground the pods including the seeds for flour when they did not have maíz, and the bark was used to dye leather. (Gentry 1942, in Felger). In Sinaloa the plant is used as a “ tónico sexual para burros” (Felger).

Alnus oblongifolia

Slender, erect trees, mostly 10-15 m, (20-30 m.). Apparently capable of sprouting from exposed roots in streams. Bark mostly smooth and grayish. Young twigs, buds, and leaves reddish and conspicuously resinous. Leaves 5-15 x 3-7.5 cm. Blades elliptic to ovate, the margins double serrated with small, sharply pointed teeth. Male flowers 2 or 3 in axils of catkin scales. Female flowers in distinctive woody and cone-like catkins. Fruit, a minute, winged nutlet. Inflorescenses emerge in fall; flowers appear at the beginning of the Spring growing season in March and April.

Stream beds in moist mountenous canyons, usually with running water; oak woodland, pine-oak woodland, and mixed conifer forest (Felger).

Arbutus arizonica

Small to medium –sized trees or occasionally 15-20 m. Handsome trees, often with thick bases, the bark peeling or flaking in copper-colored thin sheets or plates. Pubescent and often with some glandular hairs or glabrous, especially with age. Leaves alternate, simple and evergreen, blades somewhat tough, petioles and mid-ribs usually reddish. Flowers fragrant in A. arizonica, bi-sexual. Corollas creamy white, base ballooning, with a broad bell or urn-shaped tube. Fruit a semi-fleshy, red-orange, rounded edible berry, the surface granular-warty ( papilate ). Seeds about 1 cm. In diameter. A. arizonica differs from A. xalapensis by it´s distinctive growth habit with usually straighter branches, (more often purplish bark, not the “fire-red” orange – Fiona Land), different bark-characteristics and smaller darker leaves, flowers and fruits.

Oak woodland, pine-oak woodland. Slopes, ridges, cliffs and canyons. (4000-8000 ft) (Felger).

For medicinal properties, see A. xalapensis.

Notes:
Found lizards with Madroño tree at Los Flacos. Scientific name: Sceloporus jarrovii. English name : Mountain Spiny Lizard / Yarrow Spiny Lizard

Date: March 05 – 2003
Lizard family basking in early morning sun.The old crags in this Madrono obviously serves as their retreat. Lizards black all over ( they just emerged from their retreats ), with conspicuous bright turquoise belly patch, and a little dot in the middle of head between eyes (grayish ). Range includes Sierra Madre Occidental. Mountain species attracted to rocky canyons and hill-sides. Frequents open oak woodland, thornscrub, and mixed Oak – Pine forest, mostly above 5000 ft. Live-bearing, 2 – 13 young, born May – June.
Eats insects and spiders.

March 17, 2003: Found a few trees, just above las Mesitas (4800 ft), covered with an incredible amount of conspicuous hairs all over the leaves and stalks, and checkered bark all over the tree. I haven´t seen any Madroños yet that are entirely covered with checkered bark, which appears over time when the tree grows older. Not a single limb exposes it´s usual coppery-colored bark, with the thin strips flaking-off. The leaves are incredibly small for such an old tree and incredibly hairy. The tree has all the A. arizonica characteristics, but the interesting thing is that it was flowering. A. arizonica, according to Felger, doesn´t flower until May-June. Maybe so low down, in a favorable and sheltered spot, it´s possible for A. arizonica to flower. The flowers are heavily scented, which is another A. arizonica characteristic. Flowers of A. xalapensis are common this time of year, but have different characteristics, and have no scent. Found with Mistletoe (Fiona Land).

Arbutus xalapensis

Small to medium-sized trees to approximately 15-20 m. New bark smooth and mottled cream-white, turning copper-colored or bright red-orange with age.Twigs, leaves and inflorescences with white hairs; or with age the leaf blades glabrate. Blades elliptical to oval or ovate, the margins usually entire. Flowering March-April. Leaves are generally larger (and lighter green – Fiona Land) and trunks and limbs often more contorted than those of A. arizonica (and usually more reddish, as if tree is on fire - Fiona Land). Flowering March-April. Flowers larger and without scent. Fruits 1-1.5 cm. In diameter.
Slopes, ridges and canyons; pine-oak woodland. 4500-7500 ft (Felger).
Medicinal: The fruit is edible, mealy and sweetish. Good for rheumatism and kidneys. Bark and leaves good for diarrhea and skin. The sprouts help for abdominal pains during menstruation ( ).

Tent caterpillar: Silk pouches of the communal larvae of Eucheira socials, a pierid butterfly, are prominent in Madroños of the Mexican highlands. The larvae venture out at night from their often large pouches to feed on the leaves. In many areas of Mexico people have made use of the larvae for food and the silk for paper and fabric (Felger).

Bursera grandifolia

Trees 6-15 m, trunk to 40-60 cm in diameter, often forming a very open and broad crown. Bark of limbs and trunk dark green to bluish-green during Summer rainy season, in dry seasons exfoliating in large copper-colored papery strips or sheets rustling in the wind, the bark beneath smooth and often with a powdery bloom that can be rubbed-off. Inner bark or wood blood-red when cut; stems and inflorescences exuding aromatic, white sap when cut. Leafy only during Summer rainy season, quickly drought deciduous in Fall. Leaves once pinnate, 15-43 cm. Leaflets (3) 5 or 7 per leaf, 5-16 x 3-9 cm, oval to obovate and entire margins, velvety pubescent, bright green with a velvety sheen above, the veins prominent. Flowers pink and white, attractive, in compact to loose panicles as long as 6-20 cm. Fruits reddish. Flowering June, before leaves emerge. The thick trunks, unusual bark, and large leaves make these trees striking elements of the dry tropical forests. Flowering occurs a few weeks before that of the other common tropical deciduous forest Burseras. Saplings only a few years old and 1.5 m may bear substantial quantities of flowers.

Slopes, and most common in canyons, often in small dispersed stands or as scattered individuals; tropical deciduous forest.

Limbs of this tree are sometimes used for fence posts that often form roots and develop into a new tree. Cuttings made in Summer may form roots and begin vegetative growth within eight weeks. Seedlings develop rapidly. It is esteemed for medicinal tea and is said “ to give strength “. Guarijío men make their pascola masks from this Bursera (Felger).

The thin peeling bark is taken for head-aches, dysentery, colds and flu. The gum from the tree is used as a glue (Enrique Salmón). More on Medicinal properties with Bursera penicillata.

Bursera penicillata

Erect to ascending, sparingly branched trees, reaching 10 to 17 meters; sap and foliage highly aromatic with a licorice-like scent, the fragrance often wafting through the air. Twigs conspicuously thickened, the bark pubescent, red-brown, becoming slightly scaly and reddish-gray on older limbs. Leaves once pinnate, 12-38 cm, leaflets 5-13 per leaf, 2.5-12 x 1-4 cm, broadly lanceolate to elliptic, finely pubescent on both surfaces, the margins coarsely toothed. Flowers white, 3 mm, on delicate, few-to many-flowered panicles to 14 cm. Fruits purplish, bivalvate. Seeds 8 mm, blackish, about one half covered with a fleshy orange aril. Flowering June – July.

Slopes and canyons; primarily tropical deciduous forest and sometimes extending into thorn-scrub and lower elevations in oak woodland. B. penicillata is conspicuous by its upright growth habit, thick twigs, fuzzy leaves with conspicuously toothed margins, and distinctive scent. It is often locally abundant. Although it enters the lower oak zone, at these elevations it is usually comparatively stunted.

The herbage has been used to treat catarrh and the resin or sap used to treat tooth-ache, flu and other ailments. Bursera species: The foliage and gum, or copal, are aromatic and have a long history of religious and medicinal use. The wood is soft and light weight, easy to carve, and usually does not split during drying. The wood has been used for utensils, bowls, masks, among the Guarijío, Mayo, Yaqui and others; for small boxes, fetishes and other objects by the Seri. The thick-trunked desert Burseras are sometimes called “Elephant trees” ( usually Pachycormus discolor – Felger ). The thin peeling Bark is taken for head-aches, dysentery, colds and flu. The gum from the tree is used as a glue (Enrique Salmón).

Caesalpinia sp.

Ceiba acuminata

Medium-sized, drought deciduous trees, with a tall thick trunk and spreading canopy; bark dark gray-brown, densely armed with large conical “thorns” which become pyramidal and faceted, with age coalescing into intricate ridges. Even small plants form tuberous roots, the mature trees with many sometimes enormous, tough, fibrous but succulent tuberous roots. Leaflets (5) 7 (8), on short stalks, elliptic, lanceolate to oblanceolate or obovate, margins serrated. Flowers solitary on axillary peduncles. Capsules 12-25 cm, ovoid-elliptic, pendulous, hard-shelled, hanging from twigs in the canopy long after the leaves have fallen, dehiscing (November) late December through March, bursting open with a loud pop to release copious white kapok surrounding the seeds; fluffy white kapok drifts through the forest. Flowering late May – June (September).

Slopes, valleys and plains, canyons, and arroyos; common and widespread in tropical deciduous forest; less common in thorn-scrub and lower elevations in oak woodland.

The trees are larval host of the giant metallic buprestid beetle Euchroma giganteaDuring Spring conspicuous feeding aggregations of bright scarlet nymphs of a true bug (Dysdercus) often form thick balls around ceiba seeds on the ground.

The Guarijío, Mayo, and Yaqui harvested the tender, tuberous roots from young saplings or trees, generally as an emergency food; roots of larger trees are also edible but more fibrous and less desirable. The tuberous roots are peeled and eaten fresh or roasted. As emergency liquid, one would just suck on the root. The Yaqui relied on this plant for food and liquid during the Yaqui – Mexican wars. The seeds are oily and edible, with a butter-like endosperm and a nut-like flavor; they are usually roasted and ground. The seeds have been used by the Yaqui for allergies. The fluffy kapok serves as stuffing for pillows. The wood is sometimes used for tomato crates and pallets, cots, and occasionally as house beams if protected from the rain (Felger).

Celtis iguanea

Large sprawling tangled shrubs or lianas, sometimes forming enormous, impenetrable woody briars to 20+ m. across and reaching 5 to 15 m. in height, the main stems to 20 cm in diameter; sometimes tree-like when young. Many branches armed with wicked, rigid, stout, usually recurved axillary spines and also often with short-shoot thorns. Mostly evergreen or tardily drought deciduous. Leaves 4.5-11.5 x 2.5-7 cm; blades dark green, broadly ovate to oval, the base mostly or nearly symmetrical, the margins serrated, especially toward the tip to nearly entire. Fruits globose, fleshy, pale to bright orange at maturity, 9.5-11 mm in diameter, slightly sweet and insipid. Flowering at least March-July, fruiting at least late Summer-Fall.

Banks of streams and rivers, arroyos and canyon bottoms; thorn-scrub and tropical deciduous forest (Felger)

Celtis reticulata

Trees often 8-15 (20) m. with a well developed trunk. Those in Southern Sonora, generally with smooth gray bark; twigs with reddish bark. Herbage pubescent. Foliage Winter deciduous at least in Northern Sonora, or in Southern Sonora laves falling as new ones appear in January. Leaves 3-5.5 (11.5) x 1.8-4 (10) cm; blades lanceolate to mostly ovate, often asymmetric, the surfaces dry and rough to the touch due to scabrous hairs, the margins mostly entire but at least some leaves often with teeth on the apical portion of the blade. Flowers 3-5 mm. wide. Fruits yellow-orange mostly in Southern Sonora, thin, but hard-walled, globose, 7-8 mm. in diameter, the slightly fleshy mesocarp marginally edible, the fruits soon becoming dry. Flowering March-June; fruiting Summer-Fall.

Riparian habitats, usually along streams and rivers; Sonoran desert-scrub, Chihuahuan desert-scrub, thorn-scrub, tropical deciduous forest, grass-land and oak woodland (Felger).

Cinnamomum hartmanii

Trees 20 (25) m, often taller than wide, with a thick trunk, sturdy and spreading limbs, dense crown and gray bark. New growth buds minutely and densely pubescent with golden-brown hairs; twigs pubescent or glabrous, herbage otherwise glabrous. Evergreen: leaves mostly 9-23 x 2.2-6.0 cm, drooping (hanging down like mango foliage). Blades narrowly elliptic to oblanceolate or lanceolate, thickish, shiny green, moderately bi-colored, the veins pinnate and prominent below. Flowers numerous, sweet scented, greenish cream colored. Fruits 1.3-1.8 cm, rounded, one to many per panicle. Pedicels often infested by a gall-insect resulting in chains of fruit-like galls. Flowering March-April; fruiting June-July.

Riparian canyon bottoms in tropical deciduous forest and oak woodland.
The fruit is sought and eaten by the natives. It is black and rather bitter (Felger).

Coursetia glandulosa

Many stemmed shrubs or sometimes tree-like, 2-7 m, in South-eastern Sonora, with several slender trunks, the wood flexible and hard. Bark smooth and gray. Young herbage densely pubescent. Leaves gradually drought deciduous (Winter deciduous in Northern Sonora), even-pinnate; leaflets 10-22, 0.5-4 cm, thin, elliptic to oval, the mid-rib extending into an apiculate point. Summer rainy season leaves luxuriant, sparsely pubescent, reaching 13.5 cm. with larger leaflets; Spring dry season leaves fewer, densely pubescent, often 1-2.5 cm with smaller leaflets. Flowering branches, pedicels, calyx, ovary, and pods densely pubescent. Flowers single or 2-10 in axillary racemes to 3 cm. Pods 3-7.5 cm, tan, glandular-sticky, constricted between the seeds, dry, dehiscing gradually or popping open, seeds 1-6. Often flowering January-Febuary in Southern Sonora; often with mass flowering after rains.

Slopes, ridges, valleys, canyons, and arroyos; Sonoran desert-scrub, thorn-scrub, tropical deciduous forest, and lower elevations in grass-land.

The stems are sometimes encrusted with orange colored lac produced by the ant-tended scale insect Tachardiella, The lac known as Arí by the Rarámuri of the Sinforosa region (Fiona Land), was used by Native Americans as an-all purpose adhesive (Felger and Moser 1995). The Rarámuri regard Arí as a treat (Fiona Land).

Coursetia spp

Cupressus arizonica

Diospyrus sonorae

Trees to 18 meter with a trunk to approximately 1 m. in diameter and a dense, rounded crown, the bark checkered, dark brown. New growth densely pubescent with small hairs, soon becoming glabrous. Leaves essentially evergreen, alternate, simple, (4.5) 6- 14.5 cm, broadly oblong obovate, firm, glossy green above, dull below, pinnately veined, the mid-rib and veins raised below, impressed above, the tip rounded to shallowly notched, the margins entire. Flowers white and green, male flowers not seen, Female flowers 1-3 in leaf axils, approx. 3 cm. wide. Fruits fleshy and indehiscent, globose, 2.5-3.5 cm. in diameter, the pulp soft, blackish-brown. Seeds somewhat flattened, several per fruit. Flowering May-June; Fruits December January.

Arroyo and valley bottoms, canyons and coastal plains, mostly localized near habitation, sometimes common in hedge-rows; tropical deciduous forest and thorn-scrub.

The slightly sweet and astringent fruits (the fleshy pericarp) are eaten freash or cooked. The seeds parched and ground, are made into atole. The fruits are relished by frugivorous bats (Felger).

Diphysa spp

Unarmed woody shrubs or small trees, or the twigs sometimes spinescent. Stipules decidous. Leaves glabrate, odd pinnate; leaflets mostly sub-opposite. Flowers papilionoid, bright yellow, in short axillary inflorescences, with a conspicuous, promptly deciduous to persistent small bract at the apex of the pedicel. Pods indehiscent, dry, often inflated, the base narrowed to a stipe. Mexico to Northern South-America; 15 species. In thorn-scrub and tropical deciduous forest in South-eastern Sonora (Felger).

Dodonea viscosa

Shrubs or rarely trees 5-8 m. with a slender trunk to 8 cm in diameter; branches mostly erect ascending. Bark brown to light gray, shredding in narrow braided ridges. Herbage, inflorescences, sepals and ovaries densely resinous-viscous, especially when young; at first with somewhat sparse minute hairs. Leaves evergreen or nearly so, simple, those of tree-sized plants 6-15.5 x 0.8-1.8 cm, narrowly elliptic to oblanceolate, narrowed at the base and essentially sessile, the mid-rib prominent, the margins entire. Mostly dioecious but often with some bi-sexual flowers. Flowers in small clusters among the leaves, pedicelled, small and yellow-green. Fruits papery capsules 1-2 cm. wide 3-winged, drying straw color, often with massive fruit crops in Spring; capsules commonly splitting to release seeds, while the fruit is still on the plant.

Mostly on rocky slopes; widespread from low elevations in Sonoran desert-scrub to oak woodland, and higher elevations in thorn-scrub and tropical deciduous forest. Most numerous in ecotone areas with oak. For female illnesses. Treating of sterility and abortion the little branches are boiled. This plant also possesses treatment for colds, sprains, intense abdominal pains (Martha Sánchez).

Erythrina flabelliformis

Shrubs in Northern Sonora, and trees in central and Southern Sonora to 10 m. with a small high crown, and a well-formed erect trunk often 60 to 100 cm. in diameter, the major branches erect to ascending. Bark in mature forest-trees rather smooth, often coppery-orange; lenticels conspicuous, the lenticular area often enlarging to become blunt protuberances on the trunk and larger branches, these sometimes developing into stout, conical, blunt spines to 2.5 cm. Wood very soft and light colored. Bark of younger branches smooth, light-brown to yellow-gray, becoming dark-gray to brown with irregular vertical white stripes (stretch-marks) marking the expansion zones. Stems relatively thick, at least some branches with solitary, short, stout, sharp and recurved spines below the leaf nodes; these spines often persisting on the trunk and becoming broad, transverse and decurved.

Young herbage, calyx, ovary, and young pods densely wooly-pubescent, becoming glabrate. Leaves appear in early Summer, often with the first rains, light green and quickly yellowing and falling with drought in September. Leaves 15-25 cm; leaflets 3, stalked, 3.5-7.5 x 5.8-11 cm, broadly ovate to deltoid; leafstalks sometimes with small prickles. Pods 13-26.5 cm, somewhat woody, terete, constricted between seeds, commonly persisting for at least several months, eventually splitting to reveal the seeds, which gradually fall away. Seeds 1-12, approx. 15 mm, and about two thirds as wide, bright red, or occasionally yellow, orange or light-brown; immature seeds porcelain white. Inflorescences of terminal and axillary racemes 7.5-21.5 cm. Flowering May-July, when leafless or with the first few leaves, Pods ripen June-November; seeds germinate with Summer rains of the next year.

Gentle slopes to ridges, cliffs, canyons, and arroyos; tropical deciduous forest, thorn-scrub, Sonoran desert-scrub, grass-land and oak woodland. Where frost is light, or absent, Chilicote develops into a distinctive tree, and is not restricted to rock-habitats.

The soft, easy to carve wood, does not split on drying and has been used as a substitute for cork (stoppers for bottles and gourds), to make tools and toys, and by the Mayo, Opata, and Yaqui for dance-masks. Young green pods are cooked and eaten by the Guarijío and Mayo, and the Guarijío have used the logs for rafting across the rivers (Felger).

The red seeds of this legume are considered dangerous. Despite this, they are made into a wash for eye-infection. The wash can also be used for cuts, sores and wounds. In very small doses a tea can be taken for stomach-disorders. Many of the necklaces made and sold to tourists incorporate the reddish seeds into the designs (Enrique Salmón).

Eysenhardtia orthocarpa

Unarmed slender-stem shrubs, sometimes small trees to 6 m; trunk to 15 cm. In diameter, bark gray to light tan, becoming moderately fissured and separating into strips or irregular plates, giving a shaggy appearance to older limbs and trunks. Leaves tardily Winter and/or drought decidous, odd-pinnate, 5-15.5 cm. Leaflets oblong, the lower surfaces dotted with conspicuous brown glands, giving young foliage a pungent tangerine-like fragrance when crushed, later like green mango. Inflorescensces of densely white-flowered terminal and axillary racemes 3.5-17.5 cm. Flowers white, sweet scented. Pods 9-11 mm, one seeded, crowded, reflexed, flattened, brown, dry, indehiscent, and persistent for several months. Flowering April-September.

Slopes and canyons; Sonoran desert-scrub, thorn-scrub, tropical deciduous forest, grass-land, and oak woodland. The plants are browsed by the white-tail and mule deer.

Ficus petiolaris

Unusual trees that often grow on sheer canyon walls, cliffs, and mountain rocks. Trees often 10-15 m. (to 25 m. in tropical canyons). Seeds germinate in crevices or cracks. Root and stem bark white to whitish-yellow. Leaves usually heart-shaped to oval with pink conspicuous veins and raised below; petioles well-developed. Leaves 12-31 cm, foliage evergreen or sometimes drought-deciduous. Figs globose-obovoid, edible, paired or single when one fails to develop or falls-off. Pollinated by Pegoscapus wasps. Flowering about February-March. The roots grasp and cascade down the surface as if melted and poured over the rock-face. If the roots reach the canyon floor or moist soil the plant develops into a tree, otherwise it may remain dwarfed as a shrub.

Rock habitats: slopes, cliffs, canyons, streams, and arroyos; thorn-scrub, tropical deciduous forest, and lower elevations in oak woodland (Felger).
The sticky resin from the tree from this tree is applied to wounds, scratches and cuts (Enrique Salmón).

Fraxinus velutina

Trees (5) 10-25 m, often broad and high-crowned. Bark gray, with age deeply furrowed into many forking ridges. Young herbage densely hairy, the leaves sometimes becoming glabrous with age. Leaves Winter deciduous, turning golden-yellow in fall, mostly 10.5-21 cm, leaflets (3) 5-9, the margins minutely toothed to entire; larger leaflets 4-10 cm. Dioecious. Mass flowering before leaves emerge, and sometimes sporadically with the leaves during Summer and early Fall. Flowers inconspicuous. Flowering February-April; fruits Summer and Fall.

Canyon bottoms and streams; Sonoran desert-scrub, Chihuahuan desert-scrub, grass-land, oak woodland, pine-oak woodland, and pine forest. Velvet ash shows considerable variation, especially in leaf characters such as presence or absence of hairs etc Felger).

Guazuma ulmifolia

Spreading trees, often 8-10+ m, with a stout well-developed trunk and soft wood. Bark on trunks checkered, finely furrowed or fissured, and dark-gray, becoming checkered on older trunks, the younger branches with conspicuous lenticels. Twigs, leaves, flowering branches, and calyces velvety with stellate hairs. Foliage dense, nearly evergreen to often partially or sometimes fully drought deciduous in mid-to late Spring. Leaves simple, alternate, 4-12+ cm; petioles prominent, blades mostly ovate, dull green above, paler below, the margins finely toothed. Flowers yellow-green, approximately 6 mm. wide, crowded in short branched clusters in leaf axils. Fruits 2.3-4.5 cm, oval, dark brown, cone-like, hard, and woody, semipersistent, covered with short blunt prickles. Flowering May-September.

Valleys, canyons, drainage-ways and arroyos; tropical deciduous forest, thorn-scrub, Sonoran desert-scrub. The fresh, tender green fruits become mucilaginous when chewed and can relieve thirst. The flavor is bland and not sweet. The mature fruit and seeds are ground and used to make tortillas, atole and pinole, and the seeds are roasted and ground as a coffee substitute. The wood is light, soft, pliable, and strong, and has been used to make furniture, spoons, the frame for the Yaqui tampaleo drum, and violins. Women in Aduana, west of Alamos, weave baskets from strips of the bark. The Guarijío use the bark in a mixture to clean wounds (see Bursera lancifolia), the Mayo chew the bark to aid indigestion, in the vicinity of Tepoc the bark is used as kidney medicine, and it has been much used medicinally elsewhere in tropical America. The fruits are eaten by coati mundi and other animals, and the foliage is grazed by horses and cattle. Horses relish the fruits, and the seeds can pass through the animals intact. The horse, or horse-like animal, may have been the primary and original agent of dispersal (Janzen 1983, in Felger).

Hintonia latiflora

Slender upright trees or shrubs, 4-8 (10+) m, often with a single, straight slender trunk; bark on trunk of larger trees corky, deeply furrowed, and checkered, the bark of smqller branches or stems pale gray with conspicuous lenticels. Leaves produced with Summer-Fall rains and gradually drought deciduous, opposite, 5-11 cm; blades thin, broadly elliptic or oval, the veins prominent. Flowers white, fragrant, especially in the evening with a strong Jasmin-like perfume, solitary in leaf-axils, often with several flowers near ends of twigs, pedicelled. Buds yellow-green. Capsules woody, 2-3 cm, oval, often persistent for many months. Seeds numerous, flat, papery winged. Flowering mostly with Summer rains, (May) July-September (November-February); fruits mostly in early Fall.

Slopes, valley-plains, canyons and arroyos; Sonoran desert-scrub, thorn-scrub, tropical deciduous forest, and lower elevations in oak woodland.

The bark is used as a febrifuge and anti-malerial remedy in many parts of Mexico; the bark is harvested from the Alamos region, made into capsules in Navojoa and sold commercially, and it is like-wise harvested in many other parts of Mexico. Known as “Amargo” because of the bitter flavor, the tea is drunk as a purgative for intestinal parasites, as an energy tonic, and to “restore the blood”, and reduce fevers. This tea is often used when the seasons change from hot to cool weather (Felger). The bark is made into a wash to lower fevers. The bark is also added to Suwí-ki as a fermentation catalyst ( ). Bark is utilized to reduce fevers, malaria, gastro-intestinal problems, blood purifier. For bile, the bark is boiled and the tea is drunk for diabetes, water is boiled and a piece of bark is added (Martha Sánchez). The species contains quinidine aand quinine which provide anti-malerial, anti-pyretic, cardio-depressant, anti-arrhythmic and oxytocic effects (Winkelman 1986, in Enrique Salmón)

Juniperus deppeana

Large shrubs or trees to 10-13 (18) m, trunks often massive with distinctive gray bark checkered like that of an alligator hide with squarish or quadrangular plates. Terminal whip branches ascending or erect. Twigs with scale-leaves opposite. Cones maturing in two years, reaching 10 to 14 mm. In diameter, rounded, with the dry cone scale tips protruding from the body of the cone. Pollen shed February-March. The often large size, checkered bark, squarish twigs, and large fruit, set it apart from other Junipers.The trees in the Southern part of the state (Sonora) tend to be much smaller in stature, often shrubby, the checkering of the bark is generally not as pronounced, and the berries tend to be larger.

Slopes, ridges, canyons and arroyos; oak and pine-oak woodland, sometimes in mixed conifer forest, and occasionally in grass-land (Felger).

Various Juniper species: The scaly leaves are used in a tea to treat cold, flus, body aches, coughs, gastro-intestinal ailments, indigestion, stomach-aches, sore throats, gas and as a general medicine. The leaves are made into a wash to treat rheumatism. Vapors of hot infusions are inhaled for general curing. The Rarámuri word for Juniper “Aorí” means “Look to the East”(Enrique Salmón). All Juniper species are used in a similar way. Juniperus trees are also used similarly to Pines. The pitch is highly medicinal; good for colds, infections, scratches, insect-bites etc. since, like pine-pitch, it’ s a disinfectant. Juniper leaves and berries make a wonderful tea and it contains quite a bit of vitamin C. Juniper berries are wonderful in various cooking recipes. The berries are used in certain kidney/urinary tract ailments. The leaves are used as an incense and can cure people with breathing problems regarding (forest) fires, by inhaling some Juniper-leaf incense three times a day. Juniper wood is excellent for fence-posts. The shreddy bark of some species has been used for rope and sandal-making. Juniper wood can be used to make traditional-style North-American Plains flutes (Fiona Land).

Juniperus durangensis

Shrubs or shrubby trees to 5 meters, branching from near the base; trunk occasionally to 50 cm. in diameter; Bark light brown, shredding off in long fibrous strips. Scale-leaves opposite. Dioecious. Cones 6-9 mm, probably maturing in 1 year. Pollen shed in Summer, or at least after March.

Slopes in pine-oak woodland (Felger).

Lysiloma divaricatum

Multiple stem shrubs in desert regions to graceful trees mostly 4-10 m. in thorn-scrub and tropical deciduous forest (in some canyons, reaching 14-20 m.). Bark brown to gray, becoming rough with age, and on trunks and major limbs of larger trees furrowed and checkered, and flaking away in thick, woody curls or plates. Wood hard and flexible, red-brown beneath the bark. Leaves drought deciduous, most or nearly all of the foliage commonly shed in early Fall, (4) 8-12 cm, pinnae (4) 6-9 (10) pairs; leaflets numerous. Flowers sessile, in globose heads. Pods 8-13 cm, dark brown, ripening in late Summer and Fall. Seeds thinner than those of L.watsonii. Flowering June-November.
Slopes, ridges, valleys, arroyos and canyons; Sonoran desert-scrub, thorn-scrub, and tropical deciduous forest.

Is used in bakeries and for home-heating and cooking. The bark is most commonly used and preferred tanning agent in Southern Sonora. Mauto is one of the favored woods for house-construction in South-eastern Sonora, including posts, main beams, and roofing cross-supports. Large quantities of poles ,or varas, are cut and sold as grape stakes when forests are cleared for buffel-grass pasture, and larger limbs are used as fence-posts that are said to last 15 years in the ground. Good firewood. The trees are being over-harvested.

Lysiloma watsonii

Trees 5-13+ m. farther South, forming a well-developed but irregular and crooked trunk and spreading crown. Bark on larger limbs and trunk dark-colored, rough, cracking-off in large pieces. Evergreen or semi-deciduous, unless the leaves are freeze-killed, otherwise the old leaves usually remain until leaf-emergence in Spring, April in Southern Sonora. New foliage bright light green, later turning dark green. Leaves 10-15 cm, pinnae 5-10 pairs, leaflets numerous. Flowers fragrant, cream-white, in rounded subcapitate racemes. Pods 12-24.5 x 1.5-2.7 cm, dark brown, often blackish. Seeds somewhat disc-shaped, rather thick and brown. Flowering April-May. The bright green foliage makes the trees conspicuous among the other-wise dry, brown landscape of the late Spring dry season.

Slopes, canyons, arroyos; thorn-scrub, tropical deciduous forest, oak woodland, and occasionally in grass-land.

The seeds ground as flour, were an important food in the mountains of South-Eastern Sonora. The bark is chewed or prepared as a mouth-rinse for diseases of the gums and teeth. The Guarijío use the bark in a mixture to clean wounds (Bursera lancifolia). The strong durable wood has been used for construction and wooden articles. It´s a favored wood in South-eastern Sonora because it´s strong, but not too hard to work, and durable and is said to “outlast all” (Felger).

Malpighia emarginata

Shrubs in thorn-scrub, and often small trees in tropical deciduous forest. Bark on trunk and major limbs smooth and pale gray-brown, with white markings, and flaking away in thin irregular pieces. Leaves drought deciduous, 1.5-5.5 cm; blades elliptic to obovate with a terminal notch. Inflorescences of short, axillary cymes. Flowers showy, attracting bees and flies, petals pink to sometimes white. Fruits approximately 1 cm. Wide, red, 3- lobed and 3- seeded. Flowering March-November. M. emarginata is exceedingly variable.

Slopes, valleys, plains and arroyos; thorn-scrub and tropical deciduous forest.

The fruits are edible and locally harvested; they are eagerly eaten by birds. It seems to be naturalized easily by birds spreading the seeds (Felger).

Pinus arizonica

Handsome trees to > 20 m. (to 30 m. in some areas of Chihuahua), the trunk to 52 cm. In diameter, the crown rounded. Bark grayish-brown, relatively smooth with shallow furrows, often becoming reddish to reddish-brown, flaking in large, irregular plates. Leaves (4) 5-6 per bundle, (10.5) 15-25 cm, bright green, relatively straight, spreading, not drooping, and slender; sheaths persistent dark and short. In Winter, older leaves turn a rusty golden color before falling. Cones small to medium sized, essentially sessile, 4.5-8.5 (10 cm), about as long, to longer than wide, asymmetrical, light brown to gray. Pollen shed April-May.

Slopes, ridges, canyons, and often on peaks; upper pine-oak woodland, mixed conifer forest.

Pine in Rarámuri is “Oko” (Okoko plural), which means “stiff” (Enrique Salmón).

The pine-pitch of any pine can be used for various things. It´s good to be taken during colds and infections, to bring-up phlegm (use a small piece, chewing-gum size), the pitch acts as a disinfectant. Works great and on small cuts, draws out splinters and is wonderful to put on insect bites, such as mosquitos, to draw-out poison. Needles of pine trees, can be used as a tea. Tastiest are the young ones, which are rich in both vitamin A and especially C). Young needles and cones can also be chewed, and eaten, as is the inner bark of pines, especially in times of famine. Pine-pitch in general is used a lot by Indigenous people as chewing-gum. (Fiona Land. May, 2003).