Creosote

wfeller

Strangest creosote bush I've ever seen.

Joashots

Very bonsai, I like it. Beautiful backdrop too.

black mamba

Hi Walter,

Nice shot. I've never heard of a creosote bush. Are they common?

Tom

wfeller

Joashots wrote:

Very bonsai, I like it. Beautiful backdrop too.

Thank you Joash- It stopped me dead in my tracks hiking to the location I had in mind.

black mamba wrote:

Hi Walter,

Nice shot. I've never heard of a creosote bush. Are they common?

Tom

Thanks Tom. I've been here so long I forget they aren't all over. They are very common in the southern American deserts. They have nothing to do with the flame retardant 'creosote', and have few uses to people and animals- Well, except for rats, mice and tortoises, which live in burrows commonly found at the base of the plants. I've assembled some very boring information on the larrea tridentata (creosote) along with pictures >> here. <<

Two cool things about the plant; through cloning themselves (root propagation?) they have been found to live up to 12,000 years. Until the last few years they were thought to be the oldest living plant (now it's like an aspen root system -- at one million years). Another, my personal favorite is if you take the leaves and rub them between your hands and smell the leaves while cupped--it smells like rain in the desert.

Anyway, if you look at the branches at the bottom of the bush on the linked page, you may be able to see the difference as this has a much thicker base. Twisted around with the 'bonsai' look Joash mentioned, I first thought it was a California juniper, which often twist and convolute. However, the juniper cannot survive at this particular elevation (about 1,500 ft).

black mamba

Walter,

Thanks so much for the link, and also your own personal comments, about the plant.....very informative and equally interesting. Looking at the normal plant shape, I can see why this particular plant caught your eye.

Those personal shots of yours that are referred to on the link, and also the " racetrack " link you previously sent, ( in the section where you offer photos for sale ), are nothing short of spectacular. They are some of the best desert pictures I've seen anywhere.

Tom

hawkeye978

Interesting plant and a nice composition. Did you get any closeups of the bush showing the details?

NorthernFocus

The composition is pretty cool with the sunlit bush standing out against the background shadow.

Eia

The lighting is so beautiful. That is a strange looking grease-wood! We have two of them in our back yard! There is just nothing that smells more wonderful than a grease-wood after a rain. I often grab a few leaves to rub in my hand leaving that fragrance!

wfeller

black mamba wrote:

Walter,

Thanks so much for the link, and also your own personal comments, about the plant.....very informative and equally interesting. Looking at the normal plant shape, I can see why this particular plant caught your eye.

Those personal shots of yours that are referred to on the link, and also the " racetrack " link you previously sent, ( in the section where you offer photos for sale ), are nothing short of spectacular. They are some of the best desert pictures I've seen anywhere.

Tom

Thank you Tom. I think it was a unique find. I'm going to show it to some botanists in April and see if I found something they'll name after me--I do know better

I love the Mojave Desert. The site that those pages are on I have been working on for about 15 years. Most of the shots (with the exception of the larger amount of wildlife shots) were taken by me through those years. Nothing like coming on to a shot I did in the early years to be a shocking experience. And thank you very much for the awesome comment on the desert photos.

hawkeye978 wrote:

Interesting plant and a nice composition. Did you get any closeups of the bush showing the details?

Unfortunately I wasn't able. I had another 1/4 mile or so to go to get to my intended shot:



This may not be as cool, but the purpose is to show what at one time up until 10-15,000 years ago was a beach for an inland freshwater sea. A breach in the low park of the shoreline let the water rush out into lower lands beyond. The waves would strike against the shore on the right. The gentler slope on the left has been formed by other erosion (I think- I'll know more by May). Although the big light hump in this shot seems to be obnoxious and a boring subject, but to a geologist show evidence of lacustrine sediment deposition (the slightly rounded rocks and sand). At least that's what I have heard and read. I'm just some guy with a camera. I wanted a nice shot for a presentation on ancient lakes at the end of April.

articblooms wrote:

The composition is pretty cool with the sunlit bush standing out against the background shadow.

Thanks. I'm afraid I may have framed just a little too tight. I wish there were markers in the view finder for a 4:5 ratio. But otherwise, finally !!! I really like the shot myself.

Eia wrote:

The lighting is so beautiful. That is a strange looking grease-wood! We have two of them in our back yard! There is just nothing that smells more wonderful than a grease-wood after a rain. I often grab a few leaves to rub in my hand leaving that fragrance!

Thank you Eia. Before I found out what that smell was coming from I thought it was from the dirt being scorched. Sadly enough, in the neighborhood where I've lived over the last 20+ the creosote has been replaced by homes and the Joshua trees that were in the area are disappearing as many people new to the area think they are 'ugly.'

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Dogdots

Nice photos and I really like the history to go along with them

wfeller

Dogdots wrote:

Nice photos and I really like the history to go along with them

Great--thank you! I'm always amazed that everyone isn't interested in natural and human history. Then I think about it, ... It makes me really appreciate those who are.

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