SYMBOLS OF STATEHOOD

SYMBOLS OF STATEHOOD

Arizona

STATE
FLAG

The state flag represents the copper star of
Arizona rising from a blue field in the face of a
setting sun. Blue and old gold are the colors of
the state. The blue is of the same shade as that
of the flag of the United States. The lower half
of the flag is a blue field, the upper half divided
into thirteen equal segments of rays which start
at the center and continue to the edges of the
flag, consisting of six yellow and seven red rays.
A five-pointed copper star, symbolic of the state's
enormous copper industry, is superimposed on
the center of the flag.

STATE SEAL

In the background of the seal is a range of
mountains with the sun rising behind the
peaks. At the right side of the mountains
there is a storage reservoir and dam, below
which in the middle distance are irrigated
farmlands and orchards. At the right, cattle
are grazing. To the left, in the middle, dis-
tance, is a quartz mill on a mountainside in
front of which is a miner with pick and
shovel. The year 1912 is the date of Ari-
zona's admission to the Union as a state.
The motto, "Ditat Deus," means "God
Enriches."

STATE BIRD

Arizona's state bird, the Cactus Wren (Heleo-
dytes brunneicapillus couesi) is a true lover of
the desert country. The Wren's nests in cactus
plants are common. The more thornier plants
serve as protection. A woody, brown bird, with
a speckled breast, he will build not one, but
several nests, using one as a home and the
others as decoys from his enemies. Nesting time
for the Cactus Wren begins as early as March
and extends into June.

STATE TREE

The 21st Arizona state legislature, second
regular session, designated the Palo Verde
(genera Cercidium) as Arizona's state tree.
The Palo Verde (from the Spanish meaning
"green stick" or "green pole") is one of the
beautiful trees of the desert and desert
foothill regions. When it blooms, generally
in April or May depending on elevation, it
is a blaze of shimmering yellow gold. There
are two native species of Palo Verde Cer-
cidium in Arizona, the blue Palo Verde
(Cercidium floridum), characterized by a
blue-green color of the branches and leaves;
and, the foothill Palo Verde (Cercidium
microphyllum), characterized by the yel-
low-green color of branches and leaves.
Both bear a profusion of yellow blossoms
when in bloom.

STATE
FLOWER

The state flower is the blossom of the Saguaro
Cactus, the largest cactus found in the United
States. The Saguaro (sah-war-oh), or Giant
Cactus (Cereus giganteus), is found in Arizona
and northern Mexico with a very few scattered
along the Colorado River in California. This
cactus grows to a height of from forty to fifty
feet, lives to an age of from 150 to 200 years.
Its pure white waxy flowers appear in garlands
on the tips of the long arms of the plant in
May and June.

SYMBOLS OF STATEHOOD