The 'Ugly' Joshua Tree

cream-colored blossoms clustered on its spiky branches.

The lilylike flowers don't fully open, which makes pollination difficult. The small yucca moth, Tegeticula paradoxa, however, slips inside and gathers the pollen. When it deposits it in the next flower it visits, it also lays one or two eggs in the flower's ovary. When these eggs hatch, the larvae eat a few of the developed seeds. This symbiotic relationship allows both the plant and insect to exist.

If the Joshua tree isn't a tree, can a group of them be considered a forest? Politicians in western Arizona didn't really care. They were so thrilled to have anything green growing, they christened a 20-mile portion of State Route 93 between Wickenburg and Wikieup the "Joshua Forest Parkway."

And, although Joshua Tree National Park is located within the borders of California, Arizona has one of the finest stands of Joshua trees in the Southwest. Located in the northwestern part of the state between Dolan Springs and Pearce Ferry, near the Grand Wash Cliffs, it covers miles of desert along both sides of Pearce Ferry Road (County Road 25).

While too soft and porous for firewood or construction lumber, Joshua wood has had more specialized uses. It's been made into veneers and fine papers. Strong but light, the wood made excellent surgical splints. Man now uses Joshua trees more as landscaping plants, but birds have always appreciated the homes the branches provide. The Joshua's blossoms, fruit and seeds serve as food for birds, rodents and deer, and the plant casts some shade on a hot day.

A fallen Joshua limb makes a good meal for termites. The termites, in turn, become dinner for the Xantusia vigilis, or desert night lizard, a small brownish creature that spends most of its time out of sight, hunting termites under the dead limbs.

Joshua-tree hater John C. Fremont would probably gyrate in his grave if he knew the plant he considered repulsive now held such esteemed status. It just goes to prove that beauty truly is in the eye of the beholder. And