Zapoteca formosa subsp. schottii
Zapoteca formosa subsp. schottii
Botanical Name
Common Name(s)
- fairy duster
- tasopolo (Spanish)
Parent Species
Zapoteca formosaLegume Clades
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.