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Jojoba
Simmondsia chinensis
Photo of Simmondsia chinensis (jojoba) in Palm Canyon, California, taken March 2005 by Stan Shebs. This image is hosted at Wikipedia.
This mature fruit of jojoba was found along Camp Creek, Maricopa Co., Arizona in August 2008.
SHRUB : A medium to large sized shrub, occasionally pushing
3 meters in height/diameter. The stems are stiff with brown bark.
Grows back readily after fire and so does well in chaparral transition
habitats.
LEAVES: Gray-green, elyptic leaves are very leathery.
RANGE : Upper Sonoran Desert and occasionally in better watered
locations in lowland Sonoran Desert. Also under cultivation
in various Arizona and California desert locations both for city landscaping
and for production of jojoba oil. Jojoba is also a frequent element in lower elevation
interior chaparral vegetation.
FLOWERS/FRUIT: Female and male flowers are on separate plants. Male
flowers produce copious yellow pollen. Otherwise the flowers lack showy petals.
The large acorn-sized nuts borne only on female shrubs are bitter, but edible
and are the source of the jojoba oil.
UNARMED.