Desert Holly
A. hymenelytra (Torr.) S. Watson Native
A rounded, silvery-gray desert shrub growing a foot and a half to about three feet tall. The light-colored leaves, produced by salt in the plant,
are an adaptation to reflect sunslight and reduce its need for water. The distinctive, twisted, toothed leaves on the plant provide an appearance
resembling the European holly but they are not related.-
Kingdom Plantae Plants
Subkingdom Tracheobionta Vascular plants
Superdivision Spermatophyta Seed plants
Division Magnoliophyta Flowering plants
Class Magnoliopsida Dicotyledons
Subclass Caryophyllidae
Order Caryophyllales
Family Chenopodiaceae Goosefoot family
Genus Atriplex L. saltbush P
Species Atriplex hymenelytra (Torr.) S. Watson desertholly
Shrub 310 dm, rounded, silver-scaly.
Stem: simple proximally, erect; branches many, spreading to ascending.
Leaf: petioled, blade 1245 mm, wide- ovate to round, thick, irregular-sharply dentate.
Pistillate inflorescence: occasionally terminal; bracts in fruit sessile to short-stalked, free, 615(20) mm, round to ± reniform, entire to ± crenate.
Seed: ± 2 mm.
2n=18. Slopes, washes, scrub; < 1500 m. East of Sierra Nevada, Desert; to sw Utah, Arizona, n Mexico. JanApr [Online Interchange]
Unabridged synonyms: [Obione hymenelytra Torr.]
Ivanpah Valley
Shrublands: Brittlebrush series, Creosote bush series, Creosote bush - white bursage series, Desert-holly series, Fourwing saltbrush series, Greasewood series, ...
Piute Valley - Sacramento Mountains
Shrublands: Black bush series, Brittlebrush series, Creosote bush series, Creosote bush - white bursage series, Desert-holly series, Scadscale series, Tamarisk ...
Panamint Valley:
Shrublands: Brittlebrush series, Creosote bush series, Creosote bush - white bursage series, Desert-holly series, Fourwing saltbrush series, Greasewood series, ...
Silurian Valley - Devil's Playground
Shrublands: Brittlebrush series, Creosote bush series, Creosote bush - white bursage series, Desert-holly series, Fourwing saltbrush series, Greasewood series, ...
Mojave Valley - Granite Mountains:
Shrublands: Allscale series, Brittlebrush series, Creosote bush series, Creosote bush - white bursage series, Desert-holly series, Fourwing saltbrush series, ...
Hollow Hills Wilderness - Mojave Desert
Desert tortoise and Mojave fringe-toed lizard have been seen here. Creosote, desert holly and scale scrub plant communities prevail throughout this area.
Surprise Canyon Wilderness
Creosote bush scrub and desert holly dot the alluvial fans, while the rocky canyon walls support the endangered Panamint daisy. Cottonwood and willows grow ...
Borrego Valley - West Mesa:
Desert-holly series, Elephant tree stands, Mojave yucca series, Nolina series, Ocotillo series, Teddy-bear cholla series, White bursage series.
Creosote bush - Mojave Desert
It also occurs as a transitional species in desert grasslands, mesquite woodlands, ... Creosotebush also occurs in the Mojave Desert scrub association with ...
Lucerne - Johnson Valleys and Hills
Grasslands: Alkali sacaton series, Big galleta series, Desert needlegrass series, ... bush - white bursage series, Desert-holly series, Fourwing saltbrush series, ...
Badwater Region
The predominant natural plant communities on fans are Desert-holly series and, higher up the fans, Creosote bush series. Desert-holly series is replaced by ...
Mushroom Rock & Lake Manly Terrace
The predominant natural plant communities on fans are Desert-holly series and, ... Desert-holly series is replaced by Allscale series toward the southern end of ...
Ecological Subregions of California: 322Ba
Grasslands: Alkali sacaton series, Desert sand - verbena series, Indian ricegrass ... bush - white bursage series, Desert-holly series, Fourwing saltbush series, ...
The White Heart
The most flourishing shrub was the desert-holly with gray, frosted leaves shaped exactly like the leaves of Christmas holly, and small lavender berries.
