MALVACEAE 



soft velvety cordate leaves. None are of importance for forage. 

 An introduced species, A. theophrastii, has been suggested as an 

 erosion control plant. It is a tall velvety annual with small yel- 

 lowish flowers, of little value (because of its erect habit) as a 

 soil binder, and capable of becoming an undesirable weed. Its use 

 cannot be recommended, 



Thurb eria the spesioides is the common wild cotton plant of 

 the extreme southwestern ranges. It closely resembles the tame 

 cotton and is chiefly interesting because it is a host to a weevil 

 very similar to the common cotton boll weevil and one which is known 

 to attack cotton. Thousands of dollars have already been expended 

 in the eradication of this shrub from the canyons and mountains ad- 

 jacent to the Santa Cruz, Gila and Salt River valleys. If it were 

 not a host it might readily be considered favorable as an ornamental. 

 It has a little erosion control value. 



FRAMEIIIACEAE 



Fr^nkenia jamesii is a low shrub from a few inches to thirty 

 inches high, occurring in southern Colorado, New Mexico and western 

 Texas, in very sandy, alkaline soil. It has rigid branches and 

 short, slender hairy leaves in snail crowded fascicles* It is hea- 

 vily browsed in the Navajo region and probably elsewhere. Its low 

 spreading hal.it suggests that it nay have value for erosion control 

 work. 



TAI IAH I C AC EAE 



♦Tamarix gallica or Salt Cedar, is not a native of this coun- 

 try in spite of its wide distribution and abundance. It was intro- 

 duced from Europe many years ago. In the Sou tir rest it is variously 

 rated as an excel lent erosion control plant and as a:i obno.xj.ous 

 weed. It may well be considered a godsend in portion ? of the Rio 

 Grande valley and in the Pecos valley where the dense stands are 

 very effective in stopping erosion. It occupies alkali flats and 

 bottomlands where there is some overflow and where erosion, without 

 it, might be severe, During starvation times stock browse the 

 green twigs and leaves. This shrub or small tree is hardy in all 

 but high altitudes in the southwest. Along water courses it spreads 

 rapidly by seeds. In cultivation it .is most easily propagated by 

 means of cuttings or young plants taken from sandy bottoms. 



*T amar ix articulata , often called Evergreen Tamarix, is an 

 extremely rapid-growing tree introduced perhaps forty years ago to 

 the warm portions of the southwest from north Africa. It resembles 

 a cedar, remains green throughout the year, produces an abundance 

 of shade, posts and wood, and is readily propagated by cuttings. 



-Ill- 



