PINUS MONOPHYLLA

Allowing Pinus Monophylla in the early morning sunlight to completely claim your senses can evoke a reverence for life under their ancient and mystical presence. Old indeed, with fossil records indicating their existance in Joshua Tree National Park for almost 50,000 years.

Botanists recognize the Subspecies Californiarum occuring in the Little San Bernardino Mointains near Skull Rock among a mildly mixed Pinyon-Juniper biome, with splashes of Creosote Bush Scrub, Joshua Tree Woodland and Oak Woodland. Plant communities often overlap and several different biogeographic regions converge throughout the park.

These slow growing trees often present in a gnarly or erratic manner influenced by arid conditions. They can grow taller than their habitat cohorts, with healthy adults reaching 40 feet or more. Similar to California Juniper, the Single Leaf Pinyon has endured a history of harvesting and deforestation from modern human threats. Indigenous cultures seemed to practice more sustainable use of wood for small tools and weapons, fruits for sustinance.

ECHINOCEREUS ENGELMANNII

Personified as soldiers at sentinel among accumulated rocks, Echinocereus Engelmannii, or commonly Engelmann Hedgehog, often emulate a menacing morphology. Clutches of formidable spines in shades of red, brown, yellow, and white partially obscure the ribbed, succulent, dark green stems which tend to grow in clusters of 3 to 15.

E. Engelmannii has a widespread occurance and its endemic range passes through the Skull Rock portion of the Little San Bernardino Mountains. With abundance it flourishes in locations where sediment and small rocks are alamgamated in lee of much larger boulders or mountain ridges. Engelmann Hedgehog Rarely grows above two feet tall, and generally not more than 3 feet broad, although especially fertile grounds have resulted in larger specimens with up to 60 stems.

In March, April, and May, showy magenta flowers grow directly out of areoles, a tendancy shared among most all cactuses. In contrast, the majority of other Echinocereus species differ, with flowers starting from the stem in close proximity to, but avoiding areoles. Fruits are plump shades of red and orange, edible after spines are navigated. The history of botanical nomenclature associated with Engelmann Hedgehog is complicated, with many recent varieties sequestered to synonyms without the greater understanding needed to differentiate.

CORYPHANTHA ALVERSONII

A first gaze upon the Oak / Pinyon-Juniper Woodland habitat in the Little San Bernardino Mountains near Skull Rock might overlook smaller plants. Attenuate towards the gravely granitic grit and you will eventually encounter the uncommon Coryphantha Alversonii, otherwise referred to as Cushion Foxtail.

Appearing occasionally singular but generally as a collection, their stout cylindrical stems are less than 12 inches tall and can present deceptively soft. An in depth view reveals multiple densely packed needle like thorns heavily obscuring the green flesh beneath. The spines are often white with reddish black tips, deriving its common name. Unlike their Cylindropuntia cousins, Cushion Foxtails do not have barbs on their spines.

Blooming in May and June, C. Alversonii bears attractive flowers in shades of pink, the remanats of which often linger when the pale green plump fruits emerge. Many animals have developed ways to navigate the defenses of prickly plants and their herbivory are observable on numerous cacti nearby, excluding Cushion Foxtail. Hypothesized is an extra protective quality of its dense spine coverage.

ACAROSPORA SOCIALIS

Lichens are a set of organisms which form a mutually beneficial living bond, and approximately 150 species can be observed throughout Joshua Tree National Park. Acarospora Socialis forms flat clumps in shades of bright yellow and green on the slabs of the Skull Rock region.

Algae represent plant-like, generally aquatic organisms and Cyanobacteria are microrganisms, each capable of photosynthesis and both classified as Photobiont. A fungus is the singular term describing forms of life which aid in the decomposition of organic matter. The symbiotic relationship of Lichens is comprised of an intimate interaction between a fungus and a photobiont.

Each participant in the symbosis fulfils specific roles. The fungus partially envelops its counterpart, protecting it from the elements, while the photobiont provides sustinance for through photosynthesis. Acarospora Socialis is known as Crustose, which indicates it assumes a flat growth pattern. It prefers igneous rocks such as the Monzogranite Slopes of the Little San Bernardino Mountains.

OPUNTIA BASILARIS

Opuntia Basilaris is the Botanical name for Beavertail Prickly Pear, a Cactus endemic to the biome near Skull Rock in the Little San Bernardino Mountains. This low profile plant grows in pad like segments, generally not taller than a foot or two, and tends spread across the ground. Healthy pads will swell when precipitation occurs, and in the Mojave Desert this is usually be relegated to Winter and occasional breif Monsoon periods in warmer months. These extreme conditions often cause the average O. Basilaris to appear gnarled and withered for much of the year. Thriving specimens will sprout new growths from the top or sides of existing segments.

Pad like growth segments are a trait shared by all opuntia Species. Another characteristic found among the Genus is the presence of tiny spines, sometimes so small they are difficult to make visually without very careful examination. These Miniscule needle like protrusions are called Glochids and can dislodge easily, sticking into clothing or skin. They can even become airborne during especially intense windstorms. Glochids can be a challenge to remove, with dilligent efforts still leaving a few embedded stickers.

In spite of its small stature, this plant is widely known among casual and professional plant enthusiasts. Part of its reach seems attributed to a wide natural range. Another appealing quality comes from gorgeous purple to pink flowers, with dense thickets being a staggering sight. The fruits follow flowers, are a similar color to the pads, and taste sweet when ripe. Native cultures would remove Glochids from fruits by rolling in dirt and eat the juicy flesh once safely freed from spines. Pads were also cleaned, consumed, or placed direcly on wounds as a traditiinal treatment.

SENEGALIA GREGGII

Throughout most of the Mojave Desert, Wait A Minute Bush, known Botanically as Senegalia Greggii, finds a livable habitat. Plant communities in which the elevation approaches or exceeds 4000 feet, S. Greggii becomes more prolific where many of its lowland counterparts find the conditions less than ideal. In Joshua Tree National Park, it thrives over many in its endemic Little San Bernardino Mountains near Skull Rock.

Also commonly known as Catclaw, it generally, assumes a shrub like growth pattern, however ideal conditions will result in larger, tree like specimens over 15 feet tall. Branches are gray, and covered in small green leaves when mousture is readily available. During arid phases, it will shed many of its decidious foliage, readily revealing the small hooked thorns from which in its common names seem to be derived.

Inflorescences of yellow are bushy and somewhat cylindrical, a charachteristic shared by many organisms in the Legume Family, Fabaceae. Following flowering are pods which turn shades of brown as they ripen still attached. A detailed observation will occasionally reveal tiny holes in the pods, an idication that insect herbivory is has occured, generally rendering the afflicted seeds inert.

PRUNUS FASCICULATA

Prunus Fasciculata is the botanical name for Desert Almond, a shrub native to the Pinyon-Juniper Woodland which slowly grows abundant with the Little San Bernardino Mountains around Skull Rock.

Although numerous in the area, they can be elusive to recognize with their low profile and habit of resembling a twisted pile of dead thorny twings when in drought conditions. After precipation, foliage replenishes rapidly and its small but nerous leaves can partially obscure its gray stems. Growth of interwoven branches can be quite intricate and alluring. This plant is noted to live many years.

The flowers are small and white and if successful will produce a fruit containing a single large seed. There is some medical controversey of whether or not they should be esten due to the leaves and seeds containing hydrogen cyanide. Native cultures may have known the secret, with some evidence of seed soaking to leech out the hazardous components.

LARREA TRIDENTATA

Creosote Bush is the common name for Larrea Tridentata, a plant native to the area near Skull Rock in the Little San Bernardino Mountains. Although it might vie for the title of most abundant plant throughout other locations in the Mojave Desert, its dominance dwindles to sparseness here as the land further elevates in rein of the rocks.

Like many of its evolved co-competitors, Larrea Tridentata needs to become established before they can withstand the elements without help. Once a viable seed detaches, it needs to find a place which has adequate soil, and a wealth of shelter from the harsh wind and sun. 40 mile per hour winds in the blazing summer days or chilling winter nights can damage foliage and speed up desication. In the lee of rocks, other plants, or dead plant skeletons would be a lucky location. Required next is multiple seasons of good weather to sprout and grow resiliant enough to survive extreme conditions for extended periods.

Its primary bloom is in the end of winter and early spring, when precipitation in the Mojave is at its highest. An attractive array of small yellow flowers cover the majority of its branches. Monsoon weather in other seasons will produce additional minor blooms. After flowering, white fuzzy fruits cover the plant, and in areas where abundant, cast a white sheen to the landscape.

JUNIPERUS CALIFORNICA

At a short distance, Juniperus Californica, commonly referred to as California Juniper, can assume a similar form to another Skull Rock area native, Larrea Tridentata. Both have a ring like arrangement especially when specimens have matured enough to be multi trunked. They grow mostly shrub like and erect, yet can seem whispy with long terminal branches, especially during drought periods. A closer inspection will reveal their differences, focusing Juniper. Foliage grows in numerous clustered needle like leaves covered with tiny scales. Fruits are berry like cones in shades of blue and gray. Native cultures would consume the fruits raw, or grind them into meal. As elevation increases, the Little San Bernardino Mountains show more of their Monzogranite slopes and less of their gravely soil, better suited for J. Californica.

Starting in the 1800s, mining operations emerged which required a tremendous amount of timber for construction, heating and cooking. Local forests of Juniper and Pinyon Pine were harvested and rapidly depleted. As the industry progressed, mines used a process called smelting, whereby minerals were extracted in liquid form. Smelting needed a large amount of heat over extended periods which lead to the implementation of charcoal ovens, fueled by Juniper and Pinyons. This devastation tide rendered entire surrounding areas treeless. The end of 1800 brought a breif stay, with  non Juniper materials being used for smelting. By the mid 1900s Ranchers and Land Management organizations would affix massive ship anchor chains to twin tractors which then were drug across thousands of acres of Pinyon-Juniper Woodland. In wake of the chains, grazing crops were planted, often invasive species. Chaining has been reduced dramatically since the end of 1990, but is reported to continue in our present day.

Managing resources for such a large population is challenging, and some harvesting is necessary and understandable. However eradicating entire populations causes biodiversity to decline, which poses many serious potential issues for future generations. Given the tendancy for this plant to regrow when its natural biome is restored, hope is garnered for a more respectful and mutually beneficial way to approach development.

YUCCA SCHIDIGERA

Joshua tree national park was named for its well known and unique Yucca Brevifolia, but they arent the most abundant Yucca in the Skull Rock area. There where the land begins to slope slightly into the Little San Bernardino Mountains, Yucca Schidigera, commonly called Mojave Yucca, holds that anthropoligical accolade.

Easily differentiated from Joshua Trees, Mojave Yucca does not grow multiple branching stalks and crowns, but rather a single trunk topped with a single larger crown of spikey serrated foliage. In the Skull Rock area, Mojave Yucca tends to grow in close clumps of several individuals, some of which may be dead skeletons. Y. Schidigera also has a visible fibrous filiments attached to their sharp yellow-green leaves, which were used by traditional desert cultures to render baskets, footwear, binding. The fruits were also eaten fresh, or ground into meal.

Although many in the Pinyon-Juniper biome share a findness for rocky slopes which provide some shelter from the desert winds, a close relative, Yucca Baccata, is rarely among them. In other areas of the park, their ranges overlap, and can prove difficult to discern. There are a few criteria, in that Y. Schidigera has a distinct trunk which becomes more prominent as it matures. Younger plants or hybrids may be more daunting to differentiate.

SIMMONDSIA CHINENSIS

Simmondsia Chinensis is commonly called Jojoba. The name 'Chinensis' was storied to have originated from a clerical error of Taxonomy. The name is still in current usage, grandfathered in by nomenclature societies even though it may seem out of place for a plant which is native to the Skull Rock region of Joshua Tree National Park.

In light of jojoba being distinct enough to identify after locating a sure specimen, recognizing it in the wild can be challenging with its unassuming stature. A casual eye could pass it by, dismissing it into an amalgamation of the ubiquitous bush. Its grey green thick leaves can blend in well amongst the rocks and rises of the Little San Bernardino Mountains.

Indeed it has a shrub like apperance, with desne foliage forming a wide crown, tightly spaced from the ground through its width. Typical organsims are about 6 feet tall and broad, however exceptional conditions will produce larger plants.

Native cultures would make use of the oil by grinding the raw fruits. Sometimes they would be cooked in hot ashes and crushed on a flat stone. It was mostly applied to the hair for cleansing, sores or irritations to the scalp, eyes, or skin around the head. They were also eaten on occasion, but much of the fruit was not well digested.

About half of the fruits weight is constituted of an oil which can is used by todays culture. Different from pertolium based products, S. Chinses oil needs little processong to be rendered into an effective lubricant for machenery because it remains consistant with high temperatures.

OPUNTIA CHLOROTICA

It is noted this species has a subtle blue hue to its pads. Some viewing this plant in the wild may not understand this description, as the blue color can be barely discernable if present at all. As with their cousins the cylindropuntia, opuntia also change colors in connection with environmental factors.

Unlike its relative cholla, prickly pears generally do not have main stems, and take on a shrub like, or sprawling habit, close to the ground. Opuntia chlorotica is an exception to those averages, forming a central trunk, becoming darker, thicker, spinier, and tougher with age. Growing to a height of over 7 feet and about as wide, the pads act as branches, and develop in a wide pattern from the main stem. They are covered in pale yellow downward pointing spines, giving the overall effect of a shaggy, tree like apperance. Unlike their Cylindropuntia cousins, Spines of Prickly Pears lack a sheath like enclosure.

Pancake prickly pear near the Skull Rock area occur on steep rocky slopes of this pinyon / juniper / oak woodland with plenty of protection from the wind. Careful observation will reveal signs of herbivory / harvesting on some of the pads, and/or fruits. Given that  O. Chlorotica is thought to be ancient, with some sceintific communities proposing it to be as much as 20,000 years old, animals which share or shared its natural environment, including native human cultures, could have relied on its sustinance since before recorded modern history.

IN LEE OF THE ROCKS

An observation worth the contention of contemplation is growth habits of plant comminities. A casual comparison is the tendancy for lush vegitation to flourish around bodies of water such as rivers, streams, and lakes. In the skull rock area of joshua tree national park, the Little San Bernardino Mountains hold secrets to its biome inhabitants survival.

Although still in its infancy, there exists a hypothesis the wind is a major factor in whether or not a desert plant will survive the first few crucial years. Proposed is the idea that such organisms would need several successive years of favorable conditions in order to become established enough to survive more harsh seasons which generally come in waves after ideal phases.

Notice how the steeper more rocky slopes dont have much vegitation, and what little, if any there is, seems to be somehow stuffed into a small space between boulders? The most practical way to stop wind is with an obstacle. See how much larger, greener, and vibrant the plants appear in the lee of a leering ledge? Whether or not it is as simple as a shelter or has a more complex role, evident is the embrace of the rocks.