The palo verde (Cercidium species) is Arizona’s state tree. Its name comes from the Spanish palo verde, or “green stick” or “green pole.”
If you can’t find “palo verde” in a book about trees, it’s because it isn’t a normal tree. It isn’t a hardwood (or deciduous) tree, a conifer (evergreen) or even a palm.
Rather, palo verde is a legume, more closely related to alfalfa!
Depending on the elevation they grow at, paloverdes may bloom in April or May. Blazing with shimmering yellow-gold blossoms, they are among Southwest deserts’ most beautiful sights.
Two palo verde species are native to Arizona. The blue palo verde (Cercidium floridum) has blue-green branches and leaves. The foothill palo verde (Cercidium microphyllum) has yellow-green branches and leaves.
Dead palo verde trees or limbs make ideal homes for wood-boring beetle larvae. When the beetles are finished, a rich variety of desert bees move in.
I haven’t yet learned the story of the paloverde’s adoption. If you know any details, please let me know!
The Shock Doctrine: The Rise of Disaster Capitalism - Paperback
