Edible Plants and Wild Resources of the

Chihuahuan Desert

By Katherine Brooks, M.A. Archaeology

New Mexico State University

Over the past two thousand

years the Southwest has been

continuously occupied. For

the majority of that time

humans sustained themselves

by gathering plants and other

materials which were

abundant in the Chihuahuan

Desert. Today, we are still

surrounded by many of those

same wild resources. It is the

goal of this presentation to

examine both native uses for

indigenous resources, and to

explore present day purposes

and benefits for the continued

use of native vegetation.

The Chihuhuan Desert and

surrounding land area is mostly

shrub. Yuccas and agaves, growing

with grasses and often Creosote

Bushes, give this desert its

characteristic appearance.

Prickly-pears and Mormon Tea are

also prevalent, as is Tarbush.

Honey Mesquite grows along

washes and playas. White-thorn

Acacia, Allthorn and Ocotillo are

other large, conspicuous plants of

the Chihuahuan Desert.

•Consumption of cactus pads

was practiced among the

majority of Southwestern

cultures predominately during

times of food shortage because

the joints and stems were

tasteless and mucilaginous

(Ebeling 1986:516). Hopi

boiled and ate the stems of

Opuntia sp. in the spring and

summer (Hough 1897). Other

cooking practices for the cactus

pads and joints included drying

and pit-baking (Russell 1975).

•Nearly 1,000 plant species are

endemic to the region and 345

of them are cacti!

Prickly Pear, Opuntia sp.

•Prickly pears are very shallow rooted. It

can survive long-term drought conditions

or variable climates because it can obtain

moisture from light rain showers and

store the moisture in succulent pads

protected by a waxy coating.

Tohono O’odham communities

used to create a fermented

prickly pear fruit beverage

called navai’t (Castetter and

Underhill 1935:26).

•Creosote leaves can be used to make tea (DerMarderosian and Beutler 2005),

ethnographic studies support the use of creosote as a medicinal tea

documenting its use among the Seri, Tohono O’odham, Maricopa and Yavapai

(Ebeling 1986, Whalen 1977:210).

Creosote Bush, Larrea tridentata

•Normally the creosote bush, which

is considered a medium to large

shrub is under 4 feet tall. However,

with plenty of water, it may reach as

much 12 feet tall. The creosote

plant can survive without any rain

for two years, making it the North

American champion for drought

tolerance.

•The Mogollon probably grew Helianthus

petiolaris or wild sunflower, one of the few New

World plants that originated in the North

American Southwest (Ebeling 1986).

•Extremely drought tolerant , fast growing and

colorful.

Sunflowers, Helianthus petiolaris

Mormon Tea, Ephedra viridis

•Navajos used the tea for coughs

and nasal congestion; the plant

contains pseudoephedrine!

•This medium-sized shrub is drought resistant,

grows up to 4 feet high and has numerous

green, jointed, leafless branches.

•Today it is one of only three remainders of

what in ancient times was a much larger

Family, having endured not just one mass

extinction, 65 million years ago, which

demolished +/- 70% of extant species) but a

previous event 250 million years ago, when

about 90% of species disappeared.

•Yucca stalks were boiled and eaten

in the spring (Bell and Castetter

1941:14). However, Yucca root is

also very fibrous and was used as a

detergent and shampoo among many

pueblo cultures and would have been

heated, stirred and agitated in a

vessel to release the saponin content

of the root.

Yucca sp.

•Yucca species thrive in rocky, dry

soil with full sunlight. Generally

they grow to be about ten feet tall,

they are highly drought resistant

and produce edible fruits and

cream colored flowers.

Pinyon Pine, Pinus sp.

It may reach up to 35 feet, but the norm is more likely 10 feet. A native to high

plains, mesas, plateaus, canyons, foothills and lower mountain slopes, the pinyon

pine requires little water, produces wonderful cones, large for pine, and quite

edible and tasty. It is frost resistant, tolerant of drought, and requires full

sunlight.

White Thorn Acacia, Acacia constricta

•The individual plant may look

almost frothy with its small, green

lace-like leaves. It often loses its

leaves during frigid weather or a

prolonged drought. It blossoms in

the spring and sometimes again in

late summer, bearing miniature

yellow blooms and producing a

sweet nighttime desert fragrance.

•Modern desert inhabitants plant

the Whitethorn Acacia in gardens,

knowing the plant requires

relatively little water, attracts

wildlife (i.e., quail, dove, and other

birds), and enriches the

surrounding soil.

•Acacia grows from a few feet to 15 or

16 feet in height, often forming dense

thickets.

http://www.desertusa.com/mag09/apr09/whitethorn-acacia.html

•The Chihuahuan Desert receives only about 10 inches of rainfall per year.

•As a unique and diverse environment, the Chihuahuan Desert should be

utilized for those qualities.

•And, just because grass, trees and flowers not indigenous to the region can

grow here, doesn’t mean that we should use our limited resources to foster

there growth.

Conclusion

References

Russell, Frank

1975[1908] The Pima Indians. Tucson: University of Arizona Press.

Ebeling, Walter

1986 Handbook of Indian Foods and Fibers of Arid America. Berkeley: University

of California Press.

Harrington, Harold D.

1967 Edible Plants of the Rocky Mountains. Albuquerque: University of New

Mexico Press.

Bell, Willis H., and Edward F. Castetter

1941 Ethnobiological Studies in the American Southwest: The Utilization of Yucca,

Sotol, and Beargrass by the Aborigines in the American Southwest. The

University of New Mexico Bulletin Vol. 5, No. 5:3-74.

Castetter, Edward F., with Willis H. Bell and Alvin R. Grove

1938 Ethnobiological Studies in the Southwest: The Early Utilization and the

Distribution of Agave in the American Southwest. The University of New

Mexico Bulletin Vol. 5, No. 4:3-92.

Castetter, Edward F., and Willis H. Bell

1942 Pima and Papago Indian Agriculture. Albuquerque: University of New

Mexico Press.

Castetter, Edward F., and Ruth M. Underhill

1935 Ethnobiological Studies in the American Southwest: The Ethnobiology of the

Papago Indians. The University of New Mexico Bulletin Vol. 4, No. 3:3-84.