TAMARISK OR SALTCEDAR 



Tamarix pentandra Pall. 



Saltcedar is a deciduous shrub or small tree that was apparently 

 introduced into the United States as an ornamental shrub in the early 

 1800's. A few species are still widely used as ornamental shrubs. The 

 desert tamarisk or saltcedar, Tamarix pentandra , has become an 

 aggressive invader and now occupies extensive areas on streams and 

 flood plains of the Southwest. This species has created many pressing 

 problems because of its rapid spread, producing dense growths that 

 wastefully consume water in arid regions. Invasion of saltcedar has also 

 produced serious problems by clogging floodway channels and 

 increasing deposition of sediments. Saltcedar is considered to be a 

 phreatophyte. 



Tamarisk produces small, alternately arranged scalelike leaves 

 (insert 1) that often become encrusted with salt secretions. The 

 bushlike stems of younger plants are flexible and become 

 brownish-purple as they age. The flowers range from pink to white and 

 are clustered on branched flower stalks or panicles. The fruit is a 

 capsule which may contain a varying number of seeds. The seeds have 

 a tuft of hairs at the apex (insert 2), which aids in their wide 

 dissemination. Saltcedar seedlings develop rather slowly, although the 

 seeds germinate rapidly when deposited on moist soil. Both the 

 seedling plant and older specimens will survive submergence periods 

 of a few weeks. 



Taxonomy of species in this family has been subject to confusion 

 in the past and is still in a stage of research. In general, T. pentandra 

 is differentiated from similar species by the number of plant flower 

 parts, particularly by stamens and petals, which are produced in fives 

 (insert 3). This species is sometimes referred to as five-stamen 

 tamarisk, from which the specific name pentandra is derived. 



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