Dunbar Spring Neighborhood_Ziziphus obtusifolia

Photo from: https://www.flickr.com/photos/treegrow/38535713786

Family:Rhamnaceae

Common Names:

• English: graythorn

• Spanish: barchata

• O'odham:  U:spaḍ  
   

Scientific Name: Ziziphus obtusifolia

Rain Garden Zone: Z. obtusifolia does well in the terrace Rain Garden Zone or in the bottom. 

Reproduced with permission from "Rainwater Harvesting for Drylands and Beyond" by Brad Lancaster, HarvestingRainwater.com

Flowering Season: Summer

Characteristics: Z. obtusifolia is a densely branched, perennial shrub that can grow up to 8 ft in
height (1). Branches have light gray bark and branchlets have a pointed end (1). Leaves are
small, pale green, and oval shaped (1). Flowers are greenish-yellow or yellow and grow in
clusters and produce small, dark-blue fruits (2).
Landscape Cultivation: The shrub is considered low water use, and prefers to grow in partial
shade along dry plains, mesas and slopes (2).

Ethnobotany:

Wildlife:
The shrub acts as a great nesting site for birds and fruits are eaten by birds and small
mammals, while flowers attract pollinators (1).

Edible:
Fruits were known to be eaten raw among the Gila River Pima people, and can also
cooked into a syrup (3).
Other:
The roots of the plant can be pounded and mixed with water to produce soap and
shampoo by the Seri people (4). The Gila River Pima people used the hardwood of the
shrub as sticks for digging (3).

References:

1. Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center

2. Southwest Desert Flora
3. Rea, Amadeo M.. (1997) At the Desert’s Green Edge: An Ethnobotany of the Gila River
Pima. University of Arizona Press.
4. Felger, Richard Stephen, and Mary Beck Moser. (1985). People of the Desert and Sea:
Ethnobotany of the Seri Indians. University of Arizona Press.