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Synonym:
Atriplex grayi. Grayi spinosa. (Spiny
Hopsage) Semi-desert.
Rocks, openings. Spring. At first glance this shrub might be taken for its close cousin, Four-Winged Saltbush. But a careful look shows leaves, seeds pods, and stems to be quite different. Atriplex grayi also is far less common than the ubiquitous Atriplex canescens. When it does occur, however, it is showy and can, as the picture at the bottom of this page shows, be numerous. The plant was first named Chenopodium spinosum by William Hooker in 1834; Christian Moquin-Tandon renamed it Grayi spinosa in 1849; and Collotzi renamed it Atriplex grayi. Asa Gray, along with his teacher, John Torrey, and his pupil, Sereno Watson, dominated 19th century botany. (More biographical information.) |
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Synonym:
Atriplex grayi. Grayi spinosa. (Spiny
Hopsage) Semi-desert.
Rocks, openings. Spring. Maturing seed pods are green, yellow, and pink. Leaves are typically oval and about twice as long as wide -- best seen in the photo immediately below. But notice the new growth in the top photograph at left next to the ruler. These spring leaves are three or four times as long as they are wide and are two or three times as long as last year's leaves. Moisture in the winter and spring of 2006-2007 was actually below normal but was very heavy in the early fall and then was evenly spaced through the winter. These conditions produced excellent growth for many plants, including Atriplex grayi which had grown six to ten inches by early May. In some cases this growth exceeded the growth of the previous ten years. |
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Synonym:
Atriplex grayi. Grayi spinosa. (Spiny
Hopsage) Semi-desert.
Rocks, openings. Spring. Older leaf tips often have white hairs, best seen in the very center, top right, and bottom of the photograph. Notice also the spiny stem to the upper left and the gray bark in the upper right. |
