Annual Forbs Around Las Vegas, Vegetation Around Las Vegas
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General: Devil's Spineflower (Chorizanthe rigida) is a small annual forb with broad basal leaves on long petioles and stout spines on the short flowering stalk. The flowers are yellow, but tiny and hard to see. This plant is quite stiff and dries to an upright, spiny mass that stands long into the winter. People often confuse the dried plants with cactus. Devil's Spineflower is an common component of desert vegetation communities on sandy and gravel soils in the Lower Sonoran (Creosote-Bursage Flats) and Upper Sonoran (Mojave Desert Scrub) life zones. |
 Broad basal leaves on long petioles |
Family: Buckwheat (Polygonaceae). Other Names: rigid spiny herb, spiny-herb Plant Form: low, compact, spiny. Height: Usually about 2 inches, to 6 inches. Stems: None. Leaves: Basal; petiole long, blade less than 1-inch long, oblanceolate. |
 Dried flowering stalk during winter: tiny "cactus" |
Flowers: Tiny, yellow, hidden among spiny bracts (small and nondescript). Seeds: Habitat: Sandy and rocky desert soils. Elevation: About about 6,000 feet. Distribution: California to Utah and Arizona, and south into NW Mexico. Comments: |
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 Tiny yellow flowers surrounded by spines |
 The leaves fade early leaving only the flowering stalk |
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 Dried plants persist into the next year ... |
 ... often covering the ground with nasty, stiff spines. |
 Dried flower stalks can carpet the ground |
 Dried flower stalks can carpet the ground |
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Note: All distances, elevations, and other facts are approximate. Names generally follow the USDA database.
; Last updated 211222
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