Apr. 12,1924 Vegetation in the Semiarid Portion of the United States 111 
in this type. Saltgrass usually has a salty taste and is low-growing, seldom ex¬ 
ceeding 8 inches in height. A very common type on alkali lands in the Great 
Basin region. Owing to excessive amounts of alkali found in the soil, it is non- 
agricultural. The type affords relatively good grazing land for cattle and horses, 
however. The carrying capacity is dependent upon the density of the saltgrass; 
10 to 40 head of cattle per section. 
(65) Saltgrass. —This type, illustrated by Plate 11, A, occupies a large 
area of land in the Great Basin and even in portions of the Great Plains that 
have a shallow water table and contain a large alkali content. It may also con¬ 
tain barren alkali spots, the percentage of the surface occupied by these spots 
being governed by the concentration of alkali in the soil. Lands producing this 
type are nonagricultural unless the excess alkali is drained out. Palatable to 
cattle and horses until it matures when it is too tough for forage. It will stand 
very close grazing without injury and has a carrying capacity of 50 to 150 head 
of cattle per section. 
(66) Pickle weed 3 ( Allenrolfea occidentalis (S. Wats.) Kuntze).—The pickle- 
weed type illustrated by Plate 11, B, contains a scattered growth of small plants or 
widely spaced larger plants of pickleweed. While the basal portion of this plant 
may be large and woody, the upper stems are thick and juicy and easily crushed 
in the hand. The fleshy stems are about One-eighth of an inch in diameter. 
Pickleweed grows on very alkaline soils in the Great Basin region. It has ho 
grazing value and the land it occupies is nonagricultural. 
(67) Seepweed ( Dondia moquinii (Torr.) A. Nels.).—Seep weed is a common 
plant in the Great Basin, Colorado Desert, and adjacent valleys. It Usually 
grows in rather dense pure stands in heavy alkaline soils. The branches of seep¬ 
weed are very small and delicate and the leaves fleshy and easily crushed in the 
hand. The flowering branches often appear dark near the ends. It is Worthless 
for agriculture and grazing. 
(68) Samphire ( Salicornia utahensis Tidestrom and Salicornia rubra A: Nels.).— 
This type occurs only under extremely saline conditions. The plants are very 
fleshy, seldom exceeding 6 inches in height, and have a very salty taste. It 
can be distinguished from pickleweed by the opposite leaves and branches. 
There are two types, the annual form (Salicornia rubra) and the perennial form 
{Salicornia utahensis) . The former is usually much branched, the latter having as a 
rule only one or two branches. It grows in rather restricted areas throughout the 
Great Basin. It is of no value for grazing and characterizes nonagricultural land. 
(69) Creosotebush ( Covillea glutinosa (Englem) Rydb.—Plate 12, A, shows an 
average tract of land vegetated by the creosotebush type, which consists of 
widely spaced plants of creosotebush growing either on barren soil or soil cov¬ 
ered by winter or summer annuals, such as plantain, etc. This plant is often 
locally known as greasewood and is the most common shrub in the desert sec¬ 
tions of southeastern California, southern Nevada, arid western Arizona, where 
it grows in gravelly well-drained soil. Farther east where rainfall is more abund¬ 
ant it occurs on very shallow soils, soils With caliche near the surface. This is 
especially true in southeastern Arizona, southern New Mexico, and southwest¬ 
ern Texas. It is nonagricultural unless irrigated, and very poor for grazing, 
having a carrying capacity of less than 10 head of cattle per section. 
(70) Creosotebush and Bur-sage (Franseria deltoidea Torr., F. dumosa 
A. Gray).—The creosotebush and bur-sage type, illustrated by Plate 12, B, 
is composed of an open to scattering stand of creosotebush with about an 
equal amount of two species of bur-sage. This type also frequently contains 
a scattering of paloverde, catsclaw, ironwood, mesquite, and giant cactus (Car- 
negiea gigantea (Engelm.)). It is dominant in broad valleys of western Arizona 
3 This is also known as burro-weed. 
