Use this forum to discuss matters relating to Agave, Beschorneria, Furcraea, Hesperaloe, Hesperoyucca, Manfreda, Polianthes, Yucca and related species. This is where one posts unknown plant photos for ID help.
Some terrific petroglyphs found in the heart of Hohokam territory in south central Arizona, not too far from Casa Grande.
Cylindropuntia fulgida
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C. fulgida
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Hohokam glyphs
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Hohokam glyphs
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Hohokam glyphs (great rattlesnake)
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Hohokam glyphs
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Hohokam glyphs (note the coyote to the left)
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Hohokam glyphs
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Hohokam glyphs
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Hohokam glyphs
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C. acanthocarpa × fulgida?
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Hohokam glyphs
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Echinocereus engelmannii
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Hohokam glyphs
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Hohokam glyphs
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Agave
"American aloe plant," 1797, from Greek Agaue, proper name in mythology (mother of Pentheus), from agauos "noble," perhaps from agasthai "wonder at".
"Some talk the talk, others walk the walk, but I stalk the stalk"
We returned to this small, isolated mountain range in south central Arizona to investigate rumors of a substantial undocumented high elevation Agave pop. We had previously explored much of the surrounding area and found it an Agave wasteland, with even higher elevations of 4000'+ free of our favorite horticultural charges. So we were particularly intrigued by the extreme isolation here, with a nearest Agave pop of simplex at 25 miles distant. The next closest Agaves are again simplex at 40 miles and chrysantha at 40 miles in the opposite direction.
What we found today is unique. Plants are chrysantha-like, but different from any Agave population we have seen. Whether different enough to merit new taxon consideration we cannot say, but it seems possible, especially considering that they're at least 40 miles out of range. Most Agaves here are found at 3000' - 4500', are 4' - 6' across, with long, narrow, rigid, deeply furrowed leaves. There is little diversity here, far less than with other A. chrysantha pops we've seen, and certainly less than our photo spread might suggest, in which these are tentatively labeled A. chrysantha. Some examples suggest introgression with parryi, others with simplex, so an interesting but surprisingly homogeneous bunch.
An unusual Cylindropuntia that appears intermediate between C. bigelovii and C. fulgida. No hanging fruit and no cholla ball litter.
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Ferocactus cylindraceus
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The day's first Agave, found at 3000'; most are found much higher.
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A. chrysantha
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A. chrysantha
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A. chrysantha
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A. chrysantha
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A. chrysantha
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A. chrysantha
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A. chrysantha
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A. chrysantha
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A. chrysantha
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A. chrysantha
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No shortage on scenery...
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A. chrysantha
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A. chrysantha
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A. chrysantha
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Most of the Agaves here are a lot like this. As you can see, they're big.
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A. chrysantha
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Agave
"American aloe plant," 1797, from Greek Agaue, proper name in mythology (mother of Pentheus), from agauos "noble," perhaps from agasthai "wonder at".
"Some talk the talk, others walk the walk, but I stalk the stalk"
Agave
"American aloe plant," 1797, from Greek Agaue, proper name in mythology (mother of Pentheus), from agauos "noble," perhaps from agasthai "wonder at".
"Some talk the talk, others walk the walk, but I stalk the stalk"
I have been engaged in a dialog with a Cylindropuntia-botanist regarding this photo, and we are leaning toward an ID of C. fulgida × bigelovii, despite the fact that she knows of no prior cites for this hybrid. Plant structure favors fulgida, spine color favors bigelovii, but no fulgida fruits and no dropping bigelovii cholla balls. A more detailed examination is probably in the works.
Agave
"American aloe plant," 1797, from Greek Agaue, proper name in mythology (mother of Pentheus), from agauos "noble," perhaps from agasthai "wonder at".
"Some talk the talk, others walk the walk, but I stalk the stalk"
Yes, I see what you mean. Very interesting! Whatever it is, it is a beautiful specimen. You'd think that with a bigelovii that large there should be at least one fallen cholla ball to be seen somewhere in the vicinity. Maybe pack rats took off with the cholla balls .
There is a small field of these plants at the locale we visited Thursday. A cholla botanist will need to get really motivated to engage a difficult hike/ascent to that field to collect in order to do chromosome counts and sequencing, which should determine what we have here with some certainty. One of the perks of studying Cylindropuntia is that they're typically very easy to reach. Not so much with this bunch...
Agave
"American aloe plant," 1797, from Greek Agaue, proper name in mythology (mother of Pentheus), from agauos "noble," perhaps from agasthai "wonder at".
"Some talk the talk, others walk the walk, but I stalk the stalk"
And back to Picacho in search of answers. This little range is extremely isolated, and some plants look a little different than those we see elsewhere. And there are lots of snails about, really unusual for central AZ. But we have confirmed the Agaves are A. chrysantha and may have an answer soon regarding the unusual chollas. We're now leaning toward an unusual form of C. bigelovii rather than an hybrid origin, but are far from certain. The most interesting facet of these interesting Opuntiads is that unlike "normal" bigelovii, most of these guys aren't producing the kind and quantity of cholla balls we associate with Teddy Bear Chollas, deferring to longer, unsegmented branches. These are more attractive and far more manageable, in terms of a potential landscape addition.
A. chrysantha
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Cylindropuntia bigelovii ?
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C. bigelovii ?
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A. chrysantha
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C. bigelovii (?) w/bird's nest
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A. chrysantha
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A. chrysantha
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Agave
"American aloe plant," 1797, from Greek Agaue, proper name in mythology (mother of Pentheus), from agauos "noble," perhaps from agasthai "wonder at".
"Some talk the talk, others walk the walk, but I stalk the stalk"