Desert Willow
Art by Jackie Blurton
Nature Note by the late Dr. Roland Shook
This species, found lining desert washes below 4,000 feet, is a shrubby tree from 6 to 15 feet in height when fully grown.
Although superficially resembling a willow, Desert-willows are closely related to the catalpa and are not a member of the willow family.
Inconspicuous until flowering, the orchid-like flowers present from April until August are readily admired. By late summer the flowers are replaced by long seedpods, which hang down from the branches. and serve to identify the tree long after the flowers are gone.
In the past, individuals made medicinal tea from steeping the dry flowers. The durable branches and trunks are suitable for fence posts.
Because of attractiveness, this species has been planted as an ornamental.
