Zapoteca formosa subsp. schottii

Botanical Name

Zapoteca formosa (Kunth) H. Hernandez subsp. schottii (Britton & Rose) H. Hernandez

Common Name(s)

  • fairy duster
  • tasopolo (Spanish)

Synonyms

Parent Species

Zapoteca formosa

Legume Clades

Caesalpinioideae , Mimosoid Clade , Core Mimosoids , Ingoid Clade , Zapoteca Clade , Zapoteca

Native Geographic Range

  • Southwestern North America

IUCN Status

Growth Form

shrub

Cultivation Status in AZ

Native

Description

Drought - and cold-deciduous shrubs to 5 ft (1.5 m) high with smooth, gray bark. Leaves are bipinnate with 1 or 2 pairs of pinnae, each with 3--7 pairs of small leaflets per pinna. Flowers have stamens that are white towards the tips and pink to purplish near the base, and open at night. Flowering takes place during the summer and early autumn.

Habitat

Localized in Pima County, Arizona, and more widespread in Sonora, Mexico where it grows on slopes and in canyons in the Sonoran Desert and in thornscrub.

Uses

None reported.

Horticulture

Tasopolo is rarely available from specialty nurseries. The plants resemble fairy duster (Calliandra eriophylla) however, the flowers open at night. Stems freeze back around 21° F (-6° C). Litter is minimal.