Richard TravisCopyright 2003

Plants of Northeastern Mexicowith ornamental potential for South Texas

Vol. 8, No. 2

Table of ContentsPart II

The Braheas of Northeastern Mexico

The Nolinaceae of NE Mexico -

Dasylirion, Nolina, and related genera

Ornamental Yuccas & Hesperaloes

from NE Mexico

The Hechtias of Northeastern Mexico

Some ornamental trees from the

Tamaulipan thorn scrub

The Braheas of Northeastern Mexico

It could probably best be summed up that there are two kinds of braheas in NE Mexico - Brahea moorei andeverything else. That’s about the best I can do for this tricky group of plants, the most Mexican genus of palms. Thegenus Brahea has unfortunately received less attention than many palms, and really I can’t write anything muchbeyond a rough description of the different forms I know to exist in NE Mexico. All of the braheas (again with theimportant exception of B. moorei) in NE Mexico are closely related to, if not a part of, the B. dulcis complex, eventhough at least one has proven distinct enough to warrant segregation as a different species. Currently B. decum-bens and - depending on whom you listen to - B. berlandieri are the only such recognized species.

If you consider Brahea dulcis as a single species in the most generous sense, it is an impressively variable and plasticspecies which occurs throughout much of Mexico, forming this huge complex with many forms. In Gentes Her-barum, Bailey split many of the B. dulcis apart; among these would be B. bella of Coahuila and B. berlandieri fromNuevo Leon. Most of these have since been lumped back into one or two species. Virtually all of what is found inthe drier regions of NE Mexico would comfortably fit into what Bailey described as B. berlandieri, including thegreen B. bella, though some of the low clumping forms seem to transition into plants which more closely match B.dulcis to the south. Brahea decumbens, while closely related to B. dulcis/berlandieri, appears distinct enough to beconsidered its own species by just about everyone.

Some debate revolves around whether the northern forms of the vast B. dulcis complex should be included withdulcis or kept separate as berlandieri. Dr. Henderson in his Palms of the AmericasPalms of the AmericasPalms of the AmericasPalms of the AmericasPalms of the Americas lumps them together, but Dr.Hermilo Quero of UNAM and an authority on Mexican palms, has kept them separate. Bailey of course split B.dulcis up much more, and before that B. berlandieri had been assigned the name B. dulcis var montereyensis,which may perhaps turn out to be an appropriate name for this plant. Dr. Quero wrote his dissertation on thepalms of Mexico and, while for now keeping B. berlandieri separate, spoke with me about the status of the genusthis past summer (2003). He is currently working on these plants and right now appears to keep the two distinct,though he is not sure what to do with some plants which appear to have transitional characteristics. Some mayeven be distinct enough, he says, to belong to a new species. But until his work is complete and debated thebraheas in eastern Mexico are still up in the air. As someone said, plants don’t grow in the wild with labels on them, andmany plants in the Mexican flora are particularly difficult, whether it be the braheas or agaves or hechtias or you-name-it.

The differences between B. berlandieri and dulcis are distinct enough in their “typical” forms at the edge oftheir range, but again there is this lack of uniformity in many of the plants. It is especially challenging for usamateurs who are not able to perform extensive testing on these plants which is so critical to draw any substan-tive conclusions. In their ideal forms, these are the major differences between B. dulcis and berlandieri:

B dulcis - usually green leaves, often low-trunked, clumping or branching, long graceful curved inflore-scences with the rachillae more than 5 cm in length. The inflorescences easily exceed the length ofthe leaf crown. Native to Southern Mexico.

B berlandieri - leaves often with glaucous, at least on the underside, or green, single trunked, with astiffer less graceful inflorescence with the rachillae less than 5cm long. The inflorescences do notgenerally exceed the length of the crown. From Northeastern Mexico.

So most of the braheas in Nuevo Leon and Coahuila comfortably fit into the B. berlandieri category, and thebraheas south of San Luis Potosi are closer to dulcis. Sounds easy enough to separate the two, right? Wrong.There are just too many intermediate forms found in between the two, if Tamaulipas didn’t exist it probablywould be easy to keep the two separate. So I’ve decided here that the best thing to do is not try to pretend Iknow the difference between these plants but rather give you a rundown of what I and others have observedabout the braheas from this part of Mexico. While that sounds a bit like an easy way out, there are somegeneral trends that hold among the braheas of the region which are certainly worth noting. The differences arenot so great from a floristic perspective as they are from a morphological and ecological viewpoint. It can alsobe comfortably stated, from cultivation at Peckerwood and elsewhere, that these differences are indeed ge-netic as they maintain these distinctions even when grown under the same conditions from seed.

In the very broadest sense, it can be generalized that there are two basic forms of the dulcis/berlandieri type inNE Mexico: a single trunked taller form that occurs in hotter drier localities, and the lower clumping formswhich occur in more mesic humid environs. Getting more specific, here is a more detailed description of thebraheas known to occur in the region from northern Coahuila to San Luis Potosi. Starting from the north:

Brahea berlandieri ‘La Babia’ (B. bella) - the name Brahea bella was used by Bailey todescribe the single-trunked, green braheas that occurred about an hour’s drive northwest ofMuzquiz at Rancho San Geronimo near the Rio La Babia, and again farther north towards BigBend National Park. Bailey distinguished it from B. berlandieri by the completely green habit ofthe leaves, a minor difference in the fruit and the nearly spineless petioles. None of these distinc-tions has proven sufficient to maintain it as a separate species, though most growers prefer to usethe old name, if for no other reason than using it as a way of distinguishing it from the otherbraheas of Mexico (and the name sounds nice too I suppose). In any case, it is the closest braheato Texas and is the northernmost palm known from northeastern Mexico, growing up to aroundthe 28th parallel. It is a handsome palm, with uniformly green lax leaves. Its occurrence in whatis otherwise desert vegetation gives the places where it grows an oasislike appearance, wherethey grow out in the full hot desert sun of northern Coahuila.

I had the good fortune of visiting the population at San Geronimo in May 1990, when LynnLowery went to collect seeds and photograph the plants. Driving north out of Muzquiz there isno indication at all that there would be any palms at all in this desolate region, the most interest-ing plants are a few Bauhinia lunaroides in some low hills and Quercus mohriana between PiedrasNegras and Salinas. But all of a sudden the palms appear by the thousands, everywhere - on thehills, in the valleys, you can’t believe it. They disappear almost as quickly as they appear if youcontinue northwards.

Lynn had been to this ranch at least once before our trip and was impressed with the palms, hehad even begun to grow them at Anderson Landscape Nursery in Houston during the 1990s.Several people have grown plants from these collection trips, including Jennifer Staub in Austin.Carl Schoenfeld has subsequently collected it and occasionally offers it for sale. It does not seemto be a fast growing palm but it is, not surprisingly, pretty hardy to cold, and can grow outdoorsin Central Texas is protected from severe cold when very small. Lynn had also collected a braheain the region around Bustamante, between Monterrey and Nuevo Laredo. These plants appearto be different than what was called “true” bella - Mike Anderson told me that both green andgrey forms are found there, which is not the case with B. bella.

Brahea berlandieri (B. bella)Above - NW of Muzquiz (Coahuila)Left - cultivated at Peckerwood Gardens

Brahea berlandieri (Nuevo Leon) - around Monterrey on drier mountainsides can be seen whatappear to be tiny palms way on the mountaintops growing in what appear to be impossibly difficultplaces. Bailey called these palms B. berlandieri in Gentes Herbarum. One obvious difference be-tween it and B. bella is that B. berlandieri can sometimes have silvery leaves, especially on the under-side of the leaf. Apart from this and the other slight differences previously mentioned it is virtuallyidentical to B. bella, and it grows in the same generally hot dry mountainous conditions, often on dryridgetops or on the sides of impossibly steep cliffs. Bailey noted in Gentes Herbarum that there weretwo forms reported from the mountains behind Monterrey but he had no firsthand knowledge of them.

Besides the population at Bustamante, there are reportedly braheas in a number of the smaller moun-tain ranges to the north of Monterrey, and these would undoubtedly belong with the same species/subspecies considered as B. berlandieri. So too, surely, would be the single trunked arborescent bra-heas in southern Nuevo Leon and down towards the drier areas of the Sierra Madre in Tamaulipas,around Jaumave towards Palmillas. There does seem to be, however, a general increase in the fre-quency of “blue” colored braheas as you head farther south. I noticed a particularly nice one nearVilla Maneiro back in the mountains, and have seen other notably glaucous specimens in SW Tamauli-pas. At a very southern site, near Jalpan in Queretaro, Carl and Wade have reported a population ofB. berlandieri where nearly all the plants have silver leaves.

Brahea berlandieri ‘Dr. Arroyo’ - this is an interesting variant on B. berlandieri. The most signifi-cant aspect of this palm is that all the plants in this region have short trunks, generally 6-8 feet tall atthe most. What causes this dwarfness is perplexing. I have only seen them once, growing in a magnifi-cent Dasylirion quandrangulatum forest, though I’ve heard reports of other short-trunked braheas inthe general vicinity. Dr. Quero first pointed me to this interesting population. The region is near-desert about a mile above sea level, where we found them growing in full sun on the dry slopes ofsmall canyons. All the palms we saw near Dr. Arroyo had green leaves. A population north of there inthe mountains, however, had a number of plants with silver leaves, as well as a few taller plants.

Blue forms in Brahea berlandieriAbove - south of La Escondida, NLRight - large tree north of Palmillas

Brahea berlandieri, a short form near Dr. Arroyo

Brahea ‘Silverback’ -this is a nice but rather tricky palm to describe. Carl Schoenfeld should probably be given credit for callingattention to this most interesting plant. It is found in the mountains around the Nuevo Leon/Tamaulipas border, extending as far north asthe Villa Maneiro area. I first went to look for this palm in February 2003 without luck (made a wrong turn in the mountains) but did findit later that summer. It strikes me as closer to the many of the braheas found above Cd. Victoria more than anything else, though theyseem to be more uniform and tend to have softer, more graceful lax leaves. The amount of glaucousness on their underside is, however,slightly variable from plant to plant. They appear to basically be a clumping form of B. berlandieri but are pretty distinct from the single-trunked trees known elsewhere in the region (there are, in fact, a few single-trunked forms of B. berlandieri just a few miles away in adifferent canyon west of Maneiro, and the two appear quite distinct). I found them growing in mostly full sun at approximately 2000’above sea level, on slopes of soft limestone rocks mixed with loose soil. A fair number of the braheas above Cd. Victoria could comfort-ably fit this general description, though the variability in the palms seen above Cd. Victoria is considerably higher.

Brahea ‘Ciudad Victoria’ - no doubt these palms have added to the confusion of the braheas in the region. The braheas on themountain pass west of Victoria are frankly a big mess and exhibit a higher degree of variability than other populations of braheasanywhere else I’ve seen in NE Mexico. The best guess I can give is that these plants represent some sort of intergrade zone or hybridswarm. While the general trend in the braheas from north to south is from tall and single trunked to low and clumping, here almost everygrowth habit and coloration can be found. Some of the nicest palms here are as powdery blue as can be, while others are completelygreen. A few are as low as the forms seen near Tula and may show a tendency towards a shrubby, highly clumping habit. Others have awell developed central trunk with few (or rarely no) offsets. Most seem to fall in the middle, being mildly glaucous and having a shorttrunk with some suckers, not unlike Brahea ‘Silverback’ but more unstable. It seems therefore not unreasonable to think that there arereally several forms of the B. dulcis/berlandieri complex present on the mountain, and that most of the material up there has backcrossedor intergraded to some degree. They are found growing in many situations, from full sun to the considerable shade of oaks, in generally rocky areas.

One interesting phenomenon is that, as a general trend, the higher up the mountain road you go (which means the wetter it gets), thelower growing the braheas tend to be. They are most abundant along the crest in the oak forest, where they tend to be the smallest. Onceyou start descending on the drier backside of the mountain the height of the plants quickly picks up again. A phenomenon not lost on meis that at the crest of the road, where the braheas are the most abundant, is the main place along the road where the very distinct B.moorei is found. It seems the braheas must really be in their element at this site. After you have descended into the Jaumave Valley youdo not see any more braheas until you approach the drier mountainsides to the south. In these drier environs the braheas appear virtuallyidentical to B. berlandieri as seen in other dry areas farther north. There are plants at Balneario Los Nogales east of Jaumave, in fact, thatare growing within a few feet of the Guayalejo River, but only where there is pure limestone lining the riverside.

Brahea ‘Silverback’West of Villa Mainero

The Brahea above Ciudad Victoria

The Brahea above Ciudad Victoria

The Brahea above Ciudad Victoria

Brahea aff dulcis (low green clumper) - this variety appears to be present in limitednumbers on the mountain pass above Cd. Victoria, where it tends to dissolve into the manyother forms found on the road. It is really not found in great numbers until farther south,particularly east of Tula heading towards Ocampo. These plants, according to Dr. Quero,approach B. dulcis more than the other types of braheas found in NE Mexico, though theirinflorescences appear very similar to the B. berlandieri found farther north, except perhapsthat they are less rigid and angular in their branching habit. Most of them appear completelytrunkless from a distance and their leaves are uniformly green. It is not until you see oldplants or observe the plants close up until you realize that they do develop trunks, occasion-ally a few meters tall but mostly the trunks are decumbent along the ground (they are beeasily distinguished from B. decumbens, though, by the inflorescence). The plants can ap-parently even branch along the trunk in some rare instances, another trait shared with B.dulcis. Often what is mistaken for a branching pattern, however, appears likely to be seed-lings germinating in the fibers of the old trunks. These traits become more exaggerated as youhead south, it is not uncommon to see crawling or even branched braheas in the forest westof Valles. Near El Naranjo, between Cd. del Maiz and Mante, a very similar form appears asshrubs in the understory but will develop into trees if given an opening in the forest canopy.

Not only morphologically but ecologically as well these plants are immediately distinct fromthe single trunked trees known as B. berlandieri. I have never seen these palms in anythingother than forest, namely oak forest, usually where there is some amount of soil covering thelimestone rocks. The climate is humid and distinctly tropical, with warm sultry nights andplenty of summer rain. While at first it may seem odd that braheas growing in wetter areaswould be smaller and shorter, they have evidently found a successful niche as an understoryplant, much like the B. decumbens west of Rio Verde. There are herbarium reports of brah-eas growing in the southern parts of the Sierra de Tamaulipas, it would not surprise me inthe least if they are this same type of Brahea. Morris Clint in Brownsville has an old Braheain his backyard which appears very similar to this form.

A green understory Brahea speast of Ciudad del Maiz

Left & below - A running/branching type ofBrahea aff dulcis west of VallesLower left - The low clumping green Braheafound east of Tula

Brahea aff decumbens - to the north and east of the northermost known populations of B. decumbens are several populations of ex-tremely interesting dwarf braheas. Superficially they resemble B. decumbens: they have the same low clumping growth habit and gener-ally glaucous leaves. But a closer inspection of them reveals that they are not B. decumbens at all. The inflorescences of these plants arenot compact and branched like B. decumbens but are rather long and very slender, much like a smaller version of B. berlandieri. Theleaves are also more like berlandieri, they are less stiff and larger, generally more graceful in appearance. I have currently only seen plantslike this in two locales, though there are doubtlessly others in these rugged roadless mountains (UPDATE Jan 2004 - I have spotted othersimilar palms in SW Tamps). Both populations have been collected by botanists and are labeled as B. berlandieri at the UT Herbarium.

Brahea ‘El Potrerito’ - this palm had frustratingly eluded me for the past year, getting to it to photograph it in the wild proved achallenge to say the least. Carl and John discovered it in the early 1990s while driving between Puerto Purificacion and Dulces Nombresnear a small place on the topo map called ‘El Potrerito’. To reach it requires a long drive down a very rough logging road, difficult whendry and nearly impossible when wet. It bears a superficial resemblance to Brahea decumbens, especially the decumbens seen in the oakforest west of Rio Verde, in a similarly mesic environment. This palm even develops a trailing decumbent trunk like many other dwarfpalms of NE Mexico and the leaves tend to be blue but are sometimes greener, particularly when growing in heavy shade. The inflores-cence is not tight and branched like B. decumbens but more resembles B. berlandieri , only in miniature, not exceeding a few feet. Theleaves are also more like a diminutive version of B. berlandieri or (especially) the silverback brahea, to which it seems most closelyrelated, they are softer than the leaves seen on most B. decumbens. Chamaedorea radicalis also makes an appearance at this site.

Brahea ‘Aramberri’ - it was not until a few weeks after I had finally reached the braheas at Potrerito when RL Frasier and I stumbled uponthis population to the northeast of Aramberri. Pat MacNeal in Austin had shown me a few pictures of these palms, they looked like B.decumbens from the photos, but had been listed as B. berlandieri at the UT Herbarium. They are hard to miss, all of a sudden you cometo a large dry hillside covered with these small blue braheas. A closer inspection, however, reveals that they are not the same B. decum-bens that you see to the south of here, their long flower spikes and larger soft leaves are quite different. If you continue on the same roadconditions quickly become more humid, and in the shade these palms bear a strong resemblance to the population at Potrerito.

The classification of these two populations has yet to be determined, but on an even more recent trip to Tamaulipas it appears more andmore evident that B. berlandieri/dulcis can indeed hybridize with B. decumbens. Details will be covered in a future PSST bulletin, but I’mnearly 100% convinced that there are indeed hybrids between the two species, and that even some plants in cultivation may turn out tobe hybrids also. It is entirely possible or perhaps even probable that Aramberri and Potrerito are some sort of stabilized population ofhybrid origin. It probably, in fact, will prove a better horticultural candidate than “true” B. decumbens, and seed may be easier to obtain.

Above - Brahea ‘El Potrerito’ at PeckerwoodGardensLeft - wild plants between Puerto Purificacionand Dulces Nombres on the NL/Tamps border

Brahea ‘El Potrerito’ between PuertoPurificacion and Dulces Nombres

Brahea ‘Aramberri’, Nuevo Leon

Large plant of Brahea ‘Aramberri’, Nuevo Leon

Brahea decumbens - this is probably the most famous indigenous palm from NE Mexico, and while it is closelyrelated to berlandieri/dulcis, it can be distinguished in several ways. The most important difference botanically isits consistently small decumbent habit and the inflorescence, which is shorter and branches more closer to thebase of the plant, not developing the longer, more slender, and generally less branched flower spikes of dulcis/berlandieri. This distinguishes it from very similar clumping forms of the B. berlandieri/dulcis complex which canoccur to the north and east. Its habit, apart from being clumping/decumbent (at least in the wild), is almost exclu-sively blue in color, though some green forms are known to occur near Zaragoza in Nuevo Leon and perhapselsewhere. Young seedlings of B. decumbens are green and only develop their blue coloration after some time,both in the wild and in cultivation. If you’re lucky enough to find a plant for sale, don’t be surprised if small plantswith immature leaves are green.

The natural range of B. decumbens appears to extend from southern Nuevo Leon around Zaragoza, throughsouthwestern Tamaulipas near Miquihuana and Palmillas and onto eastern San Luis Potosi (the plant was originallydescribed from plants growing near Guadalcazar north of the city of San Luis Potosi). From there it apparentlyextends southwards into Hidalgo and perhaps farther south - well out of the region covered in this book. Thelargest known populations of B. decumbens occur to the south and northwest of Palmillas. There are some espe-cially old and nice specimens on the road to Miquihuana. This area occurs as you exit the more arid Jaumavevalley and head into a slightly wetter vegetation where piñon pine and juniper forms a sort of low open forest. Inthis area are many unique and interesting plants: Nolina nelsonii, Dasylirion quadrangulatum, Mimosa martindel-campoi, Pithecellobium elastichophyllum, the list goes on and on.

The ecology of B. decumbens is interesting for sure. Ripe seed is extremely difficult to find, this no doubt contrib-utes to its rarity in cultivation, but the natural populations appear to have no problem reproducing. The plants arecertainly slow growing in the wild and appear to be slow in most gardens as well, they sucker and stay completelydecumbent - very old plants will develop trunks that run along the ground or perhaps underground for several feet.This habit may be an adaptation to fires; near Palmillas, in fact, it appeared that a major brush fire had causedextensive damage in just the past year or two. On a few hillsides on the way up to Miquihuana it forms largedominant colonies either in full sun or under light shade. It does not appear to occur below about 3000’ above sealevel (even though it seems to like heat) and can be seen as little more than a dwarf ground cover approaching the8000’ elevation mark above Miquihuana - certainly no other palm in NE Mexico comes close to such an altitude.

More curious is its presence in much more humid conditions between San Luis Potosi and Rio Verde at about 4-5000’ elevation. Here the country is lush oak forest where B. decumbens forms part of a rich understory growth,a very different environment than the much drier region in Tamaulipas. It is also reported near the relativelymesic area around Zaragoza, NL, where a number of green plants can be seen in addition to the typically blueplants seen everywhere else (I did see a single green plant on one of the hillsides covered with B. decumbens onthe way up to Miquihuana, and it certainly stood out).

Perhaps the most mysterious palms, though, are some of the dwarf braheas seen east of Ciudad del Maiz, in theoak forest on the western edge of the mountains right out of town. These small palms are green with perhaps aslight tinge of glaucous coloring and at first glance resemble most of the other green braheas in the vicinity, buttheir short branched inflorescence is more reminiscent of B. decumbens than of the B. dulcis type found else-where in these mountains. Which species this I do not know, but I would like to visit the site again at some point.

For the most part, however, the delineation between B. decumbens and B. berlandieri/dulcis is easily distin-guished by its distinct inflorescence and usually, if not always, by the leaf color and growth habit. There seems tobe few plants which do not comfortably fit into one group or the other. I am reasonably confident that, in the end,Brahea decumbens will remain a distinct species when the genus gets its long overdue reworking.

In cultivation Brahea decumbens is not at all common, no doubt due to the scarcity of seed and its often slowgrowth rates. Several botanical gardens have it in their collections, including the Huntington in California and ofcourse Peckerwood in Hempstead. Carl reports that it is sometimes tricky to get it started in Hempstead if condi-tions aren’t just right. He also reports that small plants in containers are quite vulnerable to freezing conditionswhile mature established plants are hardy to pretty severe frosts. By far the largest specimen I have seen incultivation is at the San Antonio Botanical Gardens, it is a massive plant which appears much larger than any otherB. decumbens I have ever seen in cultivation or in the wild. It cannot be terribly old - I assume it was collected byLynn Lowery, probably in the 1970s, but nobody seems to know the original source. Mountain States Nursery hasalso grown it to an impressive size in just over a decade, apparently they really like the heat (in full Phoenix sun)and nursery conditions they get in Arizona. That may be a clue for anyone who wants to attempt to grow it.

Brahea decumbensAbove right - in oak forest, on the roadfrom Rio Verde to San Luis PotosiLeft - an old plant between Palmillasand Miquihuana

Above - at 7500’ above MiquihuanaLeft - green plant near La Peña

Brahea decumbens Right - south of GuadalcazarBelow - nearly mature seed south of Palmillas

Above - Brahea decumbens atPeckerwood Gardens

Below - Brahea decumbens at the HuntingtonBotanical Gardens, California

Brahea moorei - this little known gem is perhaps the best-kept secret of the palm kingdom from North-eastern Mexico. Not only is it completely distinct from the B. berlandieri/dulcis/decumbens group of palms,it has tremendous ornamental potential for both Texas and other parts of the world. Only described in the1950s, its closest relative appears to be B. nitida from Western Mexico. In habit and inflorescence it issomewhat reminiscent of Sabal minor, though the palm is certainly more beautiful and graceful in appear-ance. The flower spike is especially distinctive for a brahea, it can often exceed 8 feet in height even if theparent plant may not be more than three feet tall. This dramatically contrasts to all the other braheas in NEMexico, which carry their inflorescences inside or to the edge of their leaf crowns but rarely much farther.The main appeal of B. moorei, however, is the foliage, it is a bright apple green with frosted edges on theupper leaf but a gorgeous chalky white underneath, the white powder rubbing off on your hands if handled.In spite of its low habit it also appears to be relatively fast growing for a brahea, at least in humid areas. Carlreports that it grows noticeably faster than B. decumbens in Hempstead and plants have grown to maturity in10 years from seed.

In Northeastern Mexico, Brahea moorei can be tricky to find if you don’t know where to look. It took severalunsuccessful trips and dead ends before Bruce Erickson of California finally gave me some explicit instruc-tions as to where I could find it on the road outside Cd. Victoria (now I pass by it and wonder how I evercould have missed it, and have even spotted it in a second locale on the same road). Sure enough, when hetold me to pull over and start walking it did indeed appear, in decent numbers, but within a very narrowrange on the mountain. Chamaedorea radicalis is also relatively abundant just a few hundred feet away, butagain is seen nowhere else on the mountain apart from the occasional odd plant. It is much more abundanton the difficult road to Puerto Purificacion, where some plants were old enough to have a similar subterra-nean trunk such as found on Sabal minor (the Mexican form) or Brahea decumbens. I have also seen a singleplant of what I suspect was B. moorei in a wash near Villa Maneiro, which suggests to me that it is moreabundant on the higher ridges in the vicinity.

It seems to be at its best at elevations of 3000 to 4000’ in NE Mexico, under the shade of oak trees in areasthat have sufficient humidity and relatively good soils - it will not grow in bare rock like other braheas. It willrarely occur at lower elevations, probably errant plants which have washed down from higher elevations inthe mountains. Its native range does not stop at Victoria, it is known from El Cielo and down into the states of

San Luis Potosi and Hidalgo also. A plant growing at the Huntington which originated from Hidalgo hasreportedly branched underground a number of times, that is not seen in the Tamaulipan plants. Thedegree of the silver “chalk” on the leaves is also reported to be more variable farther south as well.

All in all it is one of the Sierra Madre’s best palms for ornamental horticulture. Cultivated plants are cur-rently thriving in Hempstead, Dallas, and even Brownsville, and it has potential for use in many areas ofthe South and California, though I would think they may be harder to grow than, say, B. berlandieri ordecumbens in extremely hot regions such as Arizona. Plants are not certainly not readily available, butYucca-do and some of the very specialized palm nurseries in California usually have it offered for sale.Part of the problem is that it is hard to catch the plants with ripe seed in the wild, though apparently notas tricky as B. decumbens. We did see a fewfewfewfewfew plants with mature seed above Cd. Victoria in the summerof 2003 (as opposed to virtually none with B. decumbens). As with B. decumbens, some animals un-doubtedly eat the seed as it matures and then disperse it later. As cultivated plants begin to produceseed I would expect to start seeing it more and more in cultivation, where it will undoubtedly provevery popular.

Brahea mooreiAbove - on the road to Puerto Purificacion

Right - growing under oaks, west of Cd Victoria

Brahea moorei

Below - above Cd Victoria

Left - cultivated at Peckerwood GardensLower Left - old plant with trunk, near Purificacion

Brahea mooreiAbove - Peckerwood Gardens

Right - flowering plants above Cd Victoria

The Nolinaceae of NE Mexico - Dasylirion, Nolina, and related genera

Aside from the yuccas and agaves, there is another ornamental group of arborescent monocots which aredistinctly Mexican. These are the dasylirions and the fairly closely related genera Nolina and Beaucarnea. Thenolinas especially were popular in the late nineteenth century on the European Riviera but are relatively rare incultivation today, though the closely related common ponytail palm (Beaucarnea recurvata) is a staple of themodern nursery industry.

Only one species of Dasylirion, the so-called Mexican grass tree, has attracted serious horticultural interestaround the world. This is a shame, as many of the dasylirions are quite interesting and attractive. Yucca-do andPeckerwood Gardens must be commended for their appreciation and promotion of this wonderful group ofplants, they have demonstrated what powerful accents these simple plants can make in a garden, and they haveplayed off their subtle variations in leaf coloration and growth forms to the max.

Fortunately, the dasylirions of Mexico and the US Southwest have been well documented thanks to Dr. DavidBogler. Bogler lists four endemic species of Dasylirion in NE Mexico. The most notable dasylirion in cultivationfrom NE Mexico is D. quadrangulatum, formerly D. longissimum (a name now used for a very similar speciesfound farther south). This is the well-known Mexican grass tree seen in nurseries here and elsewhere. It getsthat common name from its superficial resemblance to some of the Australian grass trees in the genusXanthorrhoea.

The Mexican grass tree (simply called “sotol” like most of the dasylirions in Mexico) is a graceful, beautifulspecies with very long, slender toothless leaves and a large imposing flower spike. In the wild their trunks cangrow past 8 or 10 feet but I have never seen plants that tall in cultivation. Once taken out in the wild by thethousands, it is now grown from seed by several large nurseries. It transplants poorly and therefore it is recom-mended that only container grown plants be purchased - for every trunked plant you see in cultivation manymore have died after an attempted relocation. It is native to southern Nuevo Leon near Dr. Arroyo and south-western Tamaulipas, in Brahea decumbens country. There is only other species in the genus in the general areawhich bears a resemblance to it, D. longissimum var treleasei, which is only known from one small area in SanLuis Potosi, at Guaxcama, near Villa Juarez. RL Frasier and I went to Guaxcama in the summer of 2003 and

thought it to look virtually identical to D. longissimum, save a few very small prickles at the base ofthe leaves and a smaller inflorescence. I have seen a few plants in cultivation which resemble D.quadrangulatum but have small teeth at intervals, I don’t know if they are D. treleasei or are hy-brids with other species. Carl has told me that the true D. longissimum found farther south inHidalgo is even larger than D. quadrangulatum; I’m sure they are impressive indeed and hope tosee them in the wild one day.

While D. quadrangulatum is the most unique plant in the genus, the other dasylirions in NE Mexicoare also ornamental. Another species native to the same vicinity as the Mexican grass tree is D.miquihuanensis. It is a green plant with stiffish leaves whose leaf tips end in a rounded “brush” ofdried fibers. Many people confuse this plant with D. acrotriche, which also carries brushy fiberedleaf tips but occurs farther south and does not get as large. Older specimens of D. miquihuanensiscan develop several feet of trunk, especially in southern Nuevo Leon. If you travel the Victoria-Jaumave highway you will first see it on the backside of the front range of mountains, rather sud-denly in the brush a very different looking dasylirion with the dried brown leaf tips will just appear(D. berlandieri is common along this road as well). The plants on the Victoria pass, in fact, have amore distinctive “brushier” tip to them and are for me more ornamental than the plants foundcloser towards Miquihuana. As you ascend into the mountains above Miquihuana it appears thatthere is considerable intergrading with D. quadrangulatum, the two species can become hard to tellapart above 6000-7000’ altitude.

The most widespread species in NE Mexico is the variable D. berlandieri. It is distinguished fromother dasylirions by its usually lax, reclining leaves. Sometimes they can look untidy, but given theirvariation and usually glaucous coloring (sometimes intensely so), many of the forms can be quiteornamental. It is one of the few dasylirions which does not as a rule form some sort of a trunk. Thenative habitat ranges from the Sierra de Lampazos just south of Nuevo Laredo down through Monter-rey and into Tamaulipas and San Luis Potosi. It grows in fairly humid areas, including the Sierras deSan Carlos and Tamaulipas, and is known to occur as close as 20 miles from the Gulf of Mexico inrocky areas. It enjoys some attention from a few Texas nurserymen. Nice specimens can be seen atthe San Antonio Botanical Gardens, where some of the individuals are especially blue. Specimens

from the Sierra de Lampazos tend to be larger and more robust and appear to buck the trend and maydevelop trunks, this form is in cultivation at Peckerwood Gardens. On the road from Tula to OcampoI have seen what appears to be a completely green form of D. berlandieri. It is also unusual in that theleaves are quite wide and totally lax, they all seem to collapse at the same point. This would make fora dramatic plant on a cliff or slope. A number of plants on the road to Puerto Purificacion also havethis very pronounced weeping habit, especially if they are growing on the side of a cliff. Near Dr.Arroyo, towards the drier end of its range, it apparently hybridizes with D. miquihuanensis. I haveseen some plants that look like hybrids in the general region and, while interesting, could really notcall them attractive.

The last species known from NE Mexico is the usually glaucous D. cedrosanum. It is common aroundthe city of Saltillo and points to the northwest and west. It resembles the often-cultivated D. wheelerifrom the United States, though it has thicker leaves and is a more robust plant. A form with wider thannormal leaves is reported from the Cuatrocienegas area of Coahuila. It is not generally cultivatedthough the glaucous forms have ornamental value.

Dasylirion quadrangulatum,Mexican grass tree near Dr. Arroyo

Dasylirion quadrangulatum, cultivated near Linares

Dasylirion treleaseinear Guaxcama, San Luis Potosi

Dasylirion berlandieriLeft - weeping form, the road to Puerto PurificacionBelow - Sierra de Lampazos form, Peckerwood

Dasylirion berlandieriLeft - very pendulous green form east of TulaBelow - extra blue form, Peckerwood Gardens

Dasylirion miquihuanensisAbove - between Jaumave and Cd VictoriaLeft - Peckerwood Gardens

Dasylirion cedrosanum outside Saltillo

Resembling Dasylirion quadrangulatum are several of the trunked Nolina species. There are a num-ber of tall ornamental nolinas from Mexico, two of which are natives in the northeast. By far thebetter known of the two is Nolina nelsonii. It is commonly seen in southwestern Tamaulipas, if youtake the mountain road out of Victoria to Jaumave you can catch a brief glimpse of it just after you’vemade the crest on the mountain pass, but it does not become common until you approach the coun-tryside around Palmillas. In this area it grows in relative abundance. This is the same general areawhere such interesting plants as Dasylirion longissimum, D. miquihuanensis, and Brahea decumbensare found. Unlike most other large nolinas, this species is a dramatic blue in color and has boldstraight leaves. The giant creamy white flower spike is simply stunning in full bloom, better than eventhe finest yuccas. It apparently is the easiest large of the tree nolinas to grow in Central Texas at least,just give it well drained soil and it seems to be happy (many of the other tree nolinas such as N.longifolia can develop diseases or simply rot here). In cultivation it often gets longer more strikingleaves than in the wild, young plants can be particularly impressive and retain their blue coloring ifthey are the true species.

Until recently, Nolina nelsonii was thought to have been the only arborescent nolina from northeast-ern Mexico. In the 1990s, however, an apparent second species was discovered in the high moun-tains between Miquihuana and Zaragoza. This as-yet undescribed species has been grown by Yucca-do nursery for nearly a decade now, and has been dubbed by them simply as Nolina ‘La Siberica’after the small town it was found growing near. It is a remarkable plant, primitive looking in appear-ance, the green crown looks not too unlike a dragon tree (Dracaena draco), and the leaf tips have adistinct curl which recalls some of the Dasylirion species. It is growing at Peckerwood Gardens indeep shade and has also been grown in North Carolina. Since it generally occurs at elevations over8000 feet I am surprised that it grows in the southern U.S. at all, the climate is quite cool up thereeven in the middle of the summer. It is certainly worth growing in a garden but will probably beconfined to the cooler winter environs of Central Texas rather than steamier South Texas.

What looked like this same species was occasionally seen at lower elevations (4500 ft.?), growingwith Nolina nelsonii in some spots. Dr. Luis Hernandez at the University of Queretaro is preparing amonograph on the Mexican nolinas, and according to him this new species can intergrade with N.

nelsonii. There were a few plants above Miquihuana which did look intermediate, but they were few and farbetween - most of the time the difference between nelsonii and ‘La Siberica’ was very distinct. If anythingNolina ‘La Siberica’ appears closer to N. parviflora from farther south. Since nolinas are dioecious like datepalms it is possible that they may well start hybridizing in cultivation, far removed from their native habitat.It would be interesting to see if these nolinas might cross with something like the large impressive Nolinamatapensis from Sonora.

Closely related to Nolina is the wonderful genus Beaucarnea. The most famous of the genus is B. recurvatafrom southern Tamaulipas. It typically has several trunks which emanate from a spectacular large swollenbase which resembles an elephant’s hide. It can be seen around Gomez Farias in the mountains and isreported also from the washes and creek areas below the mountains. It is well known in cultivation through-out the world, and is often planted outdoors in extreme South Texas. As a landscape plant it is very easy togrow here, all it really needs is good drainage, though in exposed areas a hard freeze can cause the plant tofreeze back to that big base. Protected plants will lose their leaves and perhaps a foot or two of upper stemin a bad freeze but recover well. As a general rule I think the beaucarneas on the whole are better suited toSouth Texas whereas the nolinas are better subjects for Central and maybe even parts of North Texas.

Another relative of Nolina and Beaucarnea is the strange plant Calibanus hookeri. It is commonly offered insucculent and caudex nurseries. It basically resembles a large grass but develops a large swollen caudexwhich is reported to get quite large in the wild. Originally described from Hidalgo, it has been reported fromSW Tamaulipas and Nuevo Leon, which would not be surprising since it is known to occur in the Sierra deCatorce in far northern San Luis Potosi, at high elevations (8000+ ft.). This area is due west of Dr. Arroyo inNuevo Leon and undoubtedly gets quite cold in winter. I think cold tolerance should not be an issue for thisplant, though a plant enthusiast in England has told me his plants have rotted in a wet spring there whensome of his other Mexican plants survived. Excellent drainage would likely be a key to its success here. Itseems to have no trouble with the heat and humidity of a Texas summer.

Nolina nelsoniiAbove - in bloom west of Palmillas

Right - cultivated at Peckerwood Gardens

Above - Nolina sp, Dasylirion miquihuanensis type and Braheadecumbens growing in high pine forest above Miquihuana

Nolina nelsoniiUpper left - at the San Antonio Sunken GardensLower left - tall plant between Miquihuana and Palmillas

Nolina sp ‘La Siberica’Above - in cultivation, Peckerwood Gardens

Right - in the wild above Miquihuana

Nolina sp ‘La Siberica’ in the wild above Miquihuana

Calibanus hookeri in San Antonio

Beaucarnea recurvata in Harlingen

Beaucarnea recurvatanear Ocampo

Ornamental Yuccas & Hesperaloes from NE Mexico

One of the most distinctive features of the drier warm regions of North America is the abundance of large,often arborescent monocots. No, I’m not talking about palms; they are, of course, prevalent in many warmregions around the globe. The unique and exclusively North American tree monocots belong to none otherthan the genus Yucca.

While the Desert Southwest of the United States is notorious for the much-hyped Joshua trees, there isactually a larger and very common species in Northeastern Mexico, Yucca filifera, once called Y. australis(both names are confusing and may get revised again). Yucca filifera has a vast native range, from near theTexas border (about 30 miles from Lake Falcon) down into Central Mexico. In much of the drier parts of itsrange it is easily the dominant plant in the landscape. As you head farther south there are other large yuccaswhich appear very similar, but Y. filifera can be readily distinguished by its pendulous flower stalk. Large oldtrees are magnificent, the most notable in cultivation being the old giants at the Huntington Botanical Gar-dens in California. In spite of their close proximity to Texas, they are rarely seen in cultivation here, eventhough they are apparently hardy as far north as the Pleasanton area just south of San Antonio. They seemeasy to transplant and need well-drained soil, really there’s no good excuse for their scarcity here. Even onthe Mexican side of the Valley the plant is not as common as you would think.

Many of the largest and most abundant Y. filifera grow on the high Mexican plateau in San Luis Potosi. It isalso present in smaller numbers on the coastal plains and thorn scrub just south of Texas. They appear to becapable of growing from cuttings, since large fence-like rows of them can be seen in Nuevo Leon, where allthe plants are the same height. Sometimes they grow in close proximity to our native Y. treculeana, whichcan be distinguished by its smaller overall size, lack of “threads” on the leaf edges, and upright flower stalks.

Down in San Luis Potosi is Yucca potosina, which may turn out to simply be a variant of Y. filifera. It looksmuch like Y. filifera but branches rarely if at all, except sometimes at the base. I saw a number of yuccaswhich fit this general description in the subtropical forest west of Rio Verde on the road to San Luis Potosi.

There apparently is another, recently described yucca from Northeastern Mexico, Y.linearifolia (syn Y. linearis). It has been collected near Saltillo and again down near Ray-ones in Nuevo Leon. The Rayones population is reported to be pretty rare and bluer thancollections from other regions. The leaves are long and very slender, not too unlike Y.rostrata only thinner. It also resembles Y. queretaroensis from farther south but is in factnot closely related to either of those species. It is obviously very rare in cultivation, theonly specimen I know of is at Peckerwood Gardens and a few collections in Europe, but itappears easy enough to grow. There are a number of rather slender leaved yuccas be-tween Monterrey and Saltillo for which I have not found a confirmed identity.

Two yuccas which are quite common in NE Mexico actually sneak across the border in theBig Bend region of Texas, but are worth mentioning. These are the silvery Y. rostrata andthe massive Y. carnerosana. There are also a few unique endemic species from the drierparts of western Coahuila. The diminutive Y. eindlichiana resembles more of a small Hes-peraloe than a yucca, and Y. coahuilensis is another small trunkless species which is re-ported to have rather large flowers.

Right - culivated near Linares

Yucca linearifoliaAbove - Peckerwood Gardens

Right - Yucca filifera north of Dr. Arroyo

Below- Y. filifera west of Palmillas

Below - Yucca filifera cultivated in Jimenez

Above - Y. filifera, an old plant at the Huntington

Above - Yucca carnerosana south of Galeana, NLLeft - Yucca rostrata in cultivation in Harlingen

Closely related to the yuccas are the hesperaloes. There are five known species of Hesper-aloe, including the common Texas native Hesperaloe parviflora, often called red yucca. FromNortheastern Mexico come a couple of more species. The most notable is the imposing Hes-peraloe funifera from Coahuila. Renegade populations of this dramatic accent plant are alsofound in western Nuevo Leon and a single population of it was recently found north of DelRio in Texas. It has large, tall, dramatic straight leaves and long flower spikes, so long in factthat oftentimes you cannot see the flowers. The giant leaves make for a really imposing orna-mental in a drier site. Well drained conditions seem to be a must for this plant.

An interesting variant of this plant is H. funifera var. chiangii from San Luis Potosi, it seems tohave fewer, even stiffer leaves, and they appear to just rise straight out of the ground indramatic fashion. RL Frasier and I have seen it in drier areas around Ciudad del Maiz (thereare also some beautiful ocotillo “forests” in the area, if you’re into that sort of thing).

Another species from NE Mexico, Hesperaloe campanulata, looks at first glance to be a smallerversion of H. funifera but has a smaller flower stalk similar to our native red yucca. Greg Starrhas studied the hesperaloes extensively and has pondered the possibility that H. campanu-lata may actually be a plant of ancient hybrid origin which has become reasonably stable.Certainly the hesperaloes seem to readily hybridize in cultivation so this does not seem sofarfetched. Around Montemorelos I have seen what looks like H. campanulata and it doesindeed seem to exhibit variation in leaf and inflorescence size.

Hesperaloe funiferaAbove - in San AntonioLeft - at Cabañas La Florida, Tamaulipas

Hesperaloe aff campanulataLeft (upper & lower) - in San AntonioBelow - near Montemorelos

Here is yet another group of plants whose identity in northeastern Mexico is confusing to say the least. From observingnumerous populations in NE Mexico it appears that there are two distinct types of hechtias here, a type resembling H.podantha/texensis from the drier areas, and a larger plant from more humid areas which is very close to, if not the sameas, H. glomerata, which is a native of Starr County. The hechtias are sorely due for a good revision and these forms willundoubtedly be sorted out in time.

The more ornamental of the two is definitely the H. glomerata type. It is predominant in many areas of northeasternMexico, growing with a number of agaves and Dioon edule, taking advantage of drier, well drained rocky sites wheremost other plants struggle. It is found both on the thorn scrub plains in rockier soils and (especially) in the Sierra Madre,where the most colorful and interesting forms appear. The best forms seen in the mountains will have especially silveryscales and/or pronounced banding patterns to them, which can really be gorgeous.

Perhaps the best display of hechtias I have seen in NE Mexico is (wouldn’t you know it) on the road to Puerto Purifica-cion, where you are riding along what is basically the top of a mountain ridge headed towards the cloud forest, justbefore you cross the unnerving Paso de la Muerte (The Pass of Death). Here, though you are but a couple of miles fromdripping wet ferns and magnolias and sweetgums, this ridge seems to be in a sort of dry microclimate, and the vegetationis much more xerophytic in makeup. It is here that the hechtias are at their finest, many are green underneath but havea fine scaly coating of frosty white on top of the leaves, while others may have the white scales but also have distinctivered and green banded patterns underneath. Truly spectacular. Given their relative ease of cultivation, they are definitelyworthy of use in a garden where their spines will not be a problem.

The other Hechtia is more common in the drier areas almost everywhere in NE Mexico. Usually it is nowhere near asspectacular as the better forms of the H. glomerata types, but every now and then you will come across a plant that hasturned a brilliant wine red, often due to drought stress according to RL. They are quite impressive but I can’t guaranteethat the effect can be automatically replicated back home.

The Hechtias of Northeastern Mexico

Hechtia sppAbove left - a red form near PalmillasLower left and above - nicely colored forms onthe road to Puerto Purificacion

Some ornamental trees from the Tamaulipan thorn scrub

It is very difficult to find shade trees which are suited for long-term cultivation in deep South Texas. The multiplestresses that are imposed on trees here generally assures the failure of most species after a few years or decades.Temperate zone trees will not stand our long summers and salty soils, while tropical trees will thrive here until a badfreeze comes along. The best places to look for potential trees for this area are the Argentine Chaco and our ownbackyard in Tamaulipas. The following are some of the nicest trees from the thorn scrub region of Tamaulipas andsouthern Nuevo Leon which have not quite made it up to the border region but grow under similar conditions.

Acacia coulteri - this attractive thornless acacia first appears as a shrub or small tree around the Monterrey area.As you travel farther south it becomes a larger tree. It resembles a large guajillo (A. berlandieri) but is more showy inbloom, with long creamy flower spikes. It may be slightly tender (that’s probably why it’s shrubbier up north), itappears to suffer cold damage similar to our local tenaza (Pithecellobium pallens) in severe freezes.

Bumelia laetervirens - Tamaulipan coma - if you’re familiar with the local coma tree then you could be forgivenfor not recognizing this large tree in Tamaulipas. It really looks nothing like our puny tree, it is large and has thickglossy bright green leaves which give it a lush tropical appearance. It occurs natively from southwest of San Fernando(near Cruillas) and southwards. It may also creep into Nuevo Leon in one or two places. It is abundant on the riverplains north of Ciudad Victoria and again south of Soto la Marina, where in both places it makes a magnificent largeshade tree. There are a number of trees in the Lower Rio Grande Valley, mostly on the Mexican side of the river,though a few can be seen on this side (Mercedes has several trees, and there is a very nice one near Santa Maria).Older plants suffered minor branch dieback in the 1989 freeze but all recovered well. An excellent tropical tree forSouth Texas, it deserves wider use

Casimiroa pringlei - this is a smaller dense evergreen tree which occurs in Nuevo Leon south of Monterrey andTamaulipas south of San Fernando. It can be recognized from other evergreens in the area by the trifoliate leaves. Ithas been grown in south Texas for many decades. Growth is usually poor in a container but plants pick up whenplanted in the ground. Pretty hardy, I had a small tree withstand the 1989 freeze in San Antonio where it sufferedminor branch dieback. Large trees are rarely seen in a number of Texas towns, fruiting specimens are known in Kings-ville. The fruits on female trees surely attract the birds but do not smell particularly nice when rotting on the ground.

Acacia coulteri, Rio Verde-San Luis Potosi road

Casimiroa pringleiAbove - in Santa Rosa Canyon southwest of LinaresLeft - cultivated in Alice, TX

Bumelia laetervirens, Santa Maria TX

Diospyros palmeri - this small tree generally resembles our local Diospyros texana but it lacks the smooth peel-ing bark. Other than that, it is generally more attractive than D. texana, with larger lusher leaves and a slightlyfaster growth habit. It is seen in southern Nuevo Leon and near the Jimenez area in Tamaulipas and southward.While it should be plenty hardy for most of South Texas, it may have trouble in the worst freezes in Central Texas.

Ehretia tinifolia - A tropical anaqua tree. This handsome, tropical looking evergreen tree from the southern partof Tamaulipas is seen in the wild as far north as the Soto la Marina area. At first glance, most people would notrecognize them as related to our anaqua but the similar fruit and especially the distinct “fluted” trunk gives somehint. While they are commonly seen cultivated in Tamaulipas (including Matamoros, mostly trimmed up as poodletrees), it is nearly impossible to find them in Nuevo Leon.

Ficus cotinifolia - A true tropical, this ficus grows up into areas of Tamaulipas where it shouldn’t. It gets pun-ished severely in cold spells such as ‘89 near its northern limits (Jimenez area), even in the somewhat protectedcanyons of the Sierra Madre near Victoria most of the trees froze severely in the 1989 freeze. Damaged trees,however, come back with a vengeance, which is probably why it grows in areas which get a rare freeze. Large treescan be found in South Texas, even though there are other tropical figs which can stand a bit more cold.

Harpalyce arborescens - believe it or not, this attractive (if not stunning) tree from the Sierra de Tamaulipasarea and southwards has been growing in Weslaco for many decades. It has nice thin wavy leaflets. Plants inWeslaco suffered some branch dieback in ’89 but larger trees suffered little permanent damage. Apparently theycan naturalize in Weslaco, so they seem happy enough here. There used to be a large specimen at Fairchild beforeHurricane Andrew.

Myrcianthes fragrans - this is the tree that was covered in last summer’s bulletin. It’s still one of my favoritesand seems to love growing in a typical Valley yard. Add the wonderful trunk and apparent hardiness (it took 14oFin San Antonio with no stem damage) and you have a winner here. It can be seen growing at Cruillas, southwestof San Fernando, on the hill just north of Jimenez and around Soto la Marina and the Sierra Madre of CentralTamaulipas. In the arroyos around Ciudad Victoria which drain the mountains it can be seen growing in thebottom around large boulders. It loves my yard in Olmito, seedlings are coming up all over the place.

Ehretia tinifolia, cultivated in Reynosa

Diospyros palmeriRight - SW of L inares

Below - plant in fruit near Cd Victoria

Ficus cotinifolia north of Jimenez

Harpalyce arborescens in Weslaco

Myrcianthes fragrans SW of San Fernando (Cruillas)

Myrcianthes fragrans growng in a creekbedsouth of Cd Victoria

Myrcianthes fragransAbove -at CruillasLeft - north of Jimenez

Phoebe tampicensis (Nectandra salicifolia ) - the common name of this plant is aguacatillo, and indeed thefruit of this tree does look like a small avocado (they’re both in the laurel family). The leaves, however, moreresemble a willow tree, and larger specimens growing out by themselves can be quite handsome. It grows mostly inthe Sierra Madre from southern Nuevo Leon and southwards, but it is found on the thornscrub, mostly nearer themountains but also near the coast if conditions are not too dry. It should be hardy enough for the Valley but mayfreeze in Central Texas. Growth does not seem to be terribly fast, at least for me near Brownsville.

Prosopis laevigata - most people who travel south of San Fernando realize that, although there are still mesquitetrees everywhere, they look a little bit different than the ones in Texas. That’s because they are a different species,P. laevigata. In shape and overall appearance it closely resembles our local mesquite, but it is easily distinguished bythe finer smaller leaves. It also has a more evergreen habit, something that might make it worth considering forcultivation. There are supposed to be a few plants of it in the Robstown vicinity, apparently spontaneous. South ofSan Fernando and Montemorelos is the approximate transition zone between the our mesquite and this species. Inthis transition zone most of the mesquites are intergrades between the two species. A hybrid swarm is also said to bepresent around Robstown.

Wimmeria concolor - slender, clean, and graceful, wimmeria makes an elegant tree with dark green foliage. It isabundant south of Soto la Marina and is also seen in the mountains and more humid thornscrub west and north ofVictoria. There are reports of it growing in the San Carlos Mountains but generally it is rare above the 24th parallel.While mostly a forest dweller, I have seen specimens in a creek bed on the flat drier plains NE of Soto la Marina.They are not as large as trees farther south, which makes me slightly apprehensive about its hardiness. The tallestand most elegant trees seem to be just south of Soto, both towards the coast and into the foothills of the Sierra deTamaulipas.

Above -Phoebe tampicensis west of Cd VictoriaLeft - near Montemorelos

Prosopis laevigata NE of Cd Victoria

Wimmeria concolorAbove - southeast of Soto la MarinaLeft - west of Cd. Victoria

MAJOR SOURCES & FURTHER READING

Some important publications used for these issues - most are available at the University of Texas at Austin libraries

Gentes HerbarumGentes HerbarumGentes HerbarumGentes HerbarumGentes Herbarum, L.H. Bailey (Vol. VI Fasc. IV, 1943 and Vol VIII:219 f.90 1951)

Taxonomy and phylogeny of Dasylirion (Nolinaceae)Taxonomy and phylogeny of Dasylirion (Nolinaceae)Taxonomy and phylogeny of Dasylirion (Nolinaceae)Taxonomy and phylogeny of Dasylirion (Nolinaceae)Taxonomy and phylogeny of Dasylirion (Nolinaceae), David Bogler (1994) - also see Brittonia 50(1) 1998

Some field observations of Brahea in Tamaulipas, MexicoSome field observations of Brahea in Tamaulipas, MexicoSome field observations of Brahea in Tamaulipas, MexicoSome field observations of Brahea in Tamaulipas, MexicoSome field observations of Brahea in Tamaulipas, Mexico, Bruce Erickson (Principes, July 1992 Vol. 36 No. 3)

Agaves of continental North AmericaAgaves of continental North AmericaAgaves of continental North AmericaAgaves of continental North AmericaAgaves of continental North America, Howard Scott Gentry (1982)

Vegetacion del Sudeste de Tamaulipas, MexicoVegetacion del Sudeste de Tamaulipas, MexicoVegetacion del Sudeste de Tamaulipas, MexicoVegetacion del Sudeste de Tamaulipas, MexicoVegetacion del Sudeste de Tamaulipas, Mexico, Francisco González Medrano & Enrique Martínez (Biotica 2(2), 1977)

Las plantas mexicanas del genero YuccaLas plantas mexicanas del genero YuccaLas plantas mexicanas del genero YuccaLas plantas mexicanas del genero YuccaLas plantas mexicanas del genero Yucca, Eizi Matuda (1980)

Végétation de la Huasteca, Méxique: étude phytogeographique et écologiqueVégétation de la Huasteca, Méxique: étude phytogeographique et écologiqueVégétation de la Huasteca, Méxique: étude phytogeographique et écologiqueVégétation de la Huasteca, Méxique: étude phytogeographique et écologiqueVégétation de la Huasteca, Méxique: étude phytogeographique et écologique, Henri Puig (1976)

Flora generica de Arecaceas de MéxicoFlora generica de Arecaceas de MéxicoFlora generica de Arecaceas de MéxicoFlora generica de Arecaceas de MéxicoFlora generica de Arecaceas de México, Hermilo Quero Rico (1989)

Palms of northeastern MexicoPalms of northeastern MexicoPalms of northeastern MexicoPalms of northeastern MexicoPalms of northeastern Mexico, Carl Max Schoenfeld (Native Plants Journal, Fall 2002 Vol. 3 No. 2)e-copy available online at: nativeplants.for.uidaho.edu

Trees and shrubs of MexicoTrees and shrubs of MexicoTrees and shrubs of MexicoTrees and shrubs of MexicoTrees and shrubs of Mexico, Paul C. Standley (1920 to 1926)

A revision of the genus Hesperaloe (Agavaceae)A revision of the genus Hesperaloe (Agavaceae)A revision of the genus Hesperaloe (Agavaceae)A revision of the genus Hesperaloe (Agavaceae)A revision of the genus Hesperaloe (Agavaceae), Greg Starr (Madroño 44(3), 1977) - also Desert Plants 11(4) 1995

Native species of Bauhinia (Caesalpiniaceae) occurring in northeastern MexicoNative species of Bauhinia (Caesalpiniaceae) occurring in northeastern MexicoNative species of Bauhinia (Caesalpiniaceae) occurring in northeastern MexicoNative species of Bauhinia (Caesalpiniaceae) occurring in northeastern MexicoNative species of Bauhinia (Caesalpiniaceae) occurring in northeastern Mexico, B. L. Turner (Phytologia 76(4), 1994)