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Tamarisk
/ Salt Cedar - Tamarix spp.
Family: Tamaricaceae
THIS PAGE IS UNDER CONSTRUCTION.
Description
The species found in the United States are from the Mediterranean region to the East Indies and Japan. The species are very much alike and difficult to distinguish except by often minute technical characteristics of the flowers, frequently requiring as much as 20x magnification. This system provides descriptions of the genus; if species determination is desired, a regional manual can be consulted.
The most widespread species are T. chinensis Lour., Chinese tamarisk, T. parviflora DC., T. ramosissima Ledeb., T. gallica L., salt-cedar and T. pentandra Pall. Apparently, all species are also referred to by the common name tamarisk.
Plants are deciduous, although sometimes leaves persist through mild winters. The plants are shrubs or small trees with irregularly spreading-ascending, elongate branches, the leafy branchlets very slenderly flexuous. The leaves are alternate, small, scalelike, a few millimeters long, sessile, broadest basally and more or less clasping or sheathing. The flowers are small, short-pediceled or sessile with four or five pink or white petals inserted under a staminal disk. The capsules open into three to five valves. The seeds are minute, densely bearded, or rarely winged.
Some species resemble opposite or whorled-leaved Juniperus, juniper or red cedar, but Tamarix leaves are alternate.
Interesting facts
Habit and habitat characteristics are discussed above in the Home Range/U.S. Introduction paragraph.
These trees and shrubs provide shade and are excellent providers of nectar, which is very important in the production of honey . Because of their tolerance to alkaline and saline conditions, they are valuable as shade and ornamental plants. However, in many regions they have become a serious problem because they have formed extensive stands and cause great water losses. These trees take in so much more water than the native plants they displace that they have desiccated southwestern and Californian desert wetlands. They have become so abundant on islands of the Gulf that much of the native vegetation has been eliminated.
Links to more information
Website, video, and graphics by Rob Nelson
For more information on this plant or management please contact US Army Corp of Engineers
