''Thamnosma montana'', the turpentine broom, or Mojave desert-rue, is a

shrub A shrub or bush is a small to medium-sized perennial woody plant. Unlike herbaceous plants, shrubs have persistent woody stems above the ground. Shrubs can be either deciduous or evergreen. They are distinguished from trees by their multiple ...

in the citrus family

Rutaceae The Rutaceae () is a family (biology), family, commonly known as the rueRUTACEAE
in Bo ...

. It is native to the deserts of the southwestern United States and northern Mexico. Except immediately after heavy rains, its straight stems usually lack leaves, giving it a

broom A broom (also known as a broomstick) is a cleaning tool, consisting of usually stiff fibers (often made of materials such as plastic, hair, or corn husks) attached to, and roughly parallel to, a cylindrical handle, the broomstick. It is thus a ...

-like appearance. The Latin

specific epithet In Taxonomy (biology), taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, both of which use Latin gramm ...

''montana'' refers to mountains or coming from mountains.

Description

It is a

with many infrequently branched, more or less straight, broom-like, yellow-green, 30 to 60 centimeter long stems. It is usually found without leaves except after ground soaking rains, when leaves form and persist for several weeks. Peak flowering is in March, especially in wet years.

Leaves and stems

Stems are speckled with resin glands. Leaves are small and occur only after rains, then fall off (

drought deciduous Drought deciduous, or drought semi-deciduous plants refers to plants that shed their leaves during periods of drought or in the dry season. This phenomenon is a natural process of plants and is caused due to the limitation of water around the env ...

Inflorescence and fruit

Flowers occur at intervals along the stem. Each has a greenish base of blunt

sepal A sepal () is a part of the flower of angiosperms (flowering plants). Usually green, sepals typically function as protection for the flower in bud, and often as support for the petals when in bloom., p. 106 Etymology The term ''sepalum'' ...

s. The corolla is oval with rounded ends. The petals royal purple in color. Like most other parts of the plant, petals are studded with visible resin glands. The tips of the petals curve outward, revealing a protruding stigma and shorter yellow-tipped

stamen The stamen (: stamina or stamens) is a part consisting of the male reproductive organs of a flower. Collectively, the stamens form the androecium., p. 10 Morphology and terminology A stamen typically consists of a stalk called the filament ...

s. The fruit is a leathery, yellow-green, gland-spotted capsule with two nearly separate rounded lobes. Within the capsule are pale, kidney-shaped seeds about 4 millimeters long each. The fruits are eaten by animals which then

disperse Disperse was a Christian rock band from Southern Indiana active from 1996 to 2004. The band was formerly known, with an adjusted roster, as "Stuff." Members (as of 2004 dispersion) :Chelsey Pieratt - Vocals :Chris Billings - Lead Guitar :And ...

the seeds.

Range and habitat

It grows in dry desert scrub, juniper woodland, and other desert

plant communities A plant community is a collection or Association (ecology), association of plant species within a designated geographical unit, which forms a relatively uniform patch, distinguishable from neighboring patches of different vegetation types. The comp ...

. It grows among desert plants such as

creosote Creosote is a category of carbonaceous chemicals formed by the distillation of various tars and pyrolysis of plant-derived material, such as wood, or fossil fuel. They are typically used as preservatives or antiseptics. Some creosote types w ...

blackbrush ''Coleogyne ramosissima'' or blackbrush, is a low lying, dark grayish-green, aromatic,Turner, Raymond M. 1982. Great Basin desertscrub. In: Brown, David E., ed. Biotic communities of the American Southwest--United States and Mexico. Desert Plan ...

, ephedra, and ''

Yucca ''Yucca'' ( , YUCK-uh) is both the scientific name and common name for a genus native to North America from Panama to southern Canada. It contains 50 accepted species. In addition to yucca, they are also known as Adam's needle or Spanish-bayon ...

'' species such as

Joshua Tree ''Yucca brevifolia'' (also known as the Joshua tree, yucca palm, tree yucca, and palm tree yucca) is a plant species belonging to the genus '' Yucca''. It is tree-like in habit, which is reflected in its common names. This monocotyledonous tre ...

.US Forest Service Fire Ecology
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Uses and ecological interactions

Native American groups use it as a ceremonial drug, as a medicine, and for other uses.http://naeb.brit.org/uses/search/?string=thamnosma+montana

References

External links

Jepson Manual TreatmentPhoto gallery

montana Montana ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota to the east, South Dakota to the southeast, Wyoming to the south, an ...

{{Rutaceae-stub