Gypsumophiles

TerdalFarm · Post by **TerdalFarm** » Sun Sep 23, 2012 6:07 pm

I had the chance on Saturday to hike in the Cimarron Gypsum Hills of NW Oklahoma, specifically in the Selman Living lab (http://www.uco.edu/cms/sll/index.asp). My guide was Dr. Gloria Caddell, senior author of the floristic inventory of the place (Buckallew and Caddell, 2003. Vasular Flora of the University of Central Oklahoma Selman Living Laboratory, Woodward County, Oklahoma. Proc. Okla. Acad. Sci.83: 31-45 Central Oklahoma.).

The area is special for being Permian Gypsum outcrops . Millions of years of lichen and bacteria action have produced a thin mat of soil a few plants can grow on.

Of interest to us in the "Desert Area" of PN are a Yucca species (Yucca glauca) and two cacti, Echinocereus reichenbachii and Optunia macrophylla, the Plains Prickyl Pear. Here are some photos of each I took Saturday. Talk about tough plants!

<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/drterdal/8017112576/" title="DSC_0186 by drterdal, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8444/8017 ... ac298c.jpg" width="332" height="500" alt="DSC_0186"></a>

<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/drterdal/8017115174/" title="DSC_0181 by drterdal, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8037/8017 ... 0b8a96.jpg" width="500" height="332" alt="DSC_0181"></a>

<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/drterdal/8017113384/" title="DSC_0184 by drterdal, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8181/8017 ... b02acd.jpg" width="500" height="332" alt="DSC_0184"></a>

<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/drterdal/8017116844/" title="DSC_0175 by drterdal, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8303/8017 ... 8fd9d0.jpg" width="500" height="332" alt="DSC_0175"></a>

Cameron_z6a_N.S. · Post by **Cameron_z6a_N.S.** » Sun Sep 23, 2012 6:39 pm

Nice shots! Y. glauca is one of my favourite Yuccas, maybe because it's the only Canadian native Yucca

The species range is really impressive, considering that it stretches from Texas all the way to Alberta and Saskatchewan.

lucky1 · Post by **lucky1** » Mon Sep 24, 2012 9:25 am

Millions of years of lichen and bacteria action have produced a thin mat of soil a few plants can grow on.

Tough habitat with probably the same rainfall deficit as mesas in S.CA and Arizona?
Great pics Erik, thanks.

from Texas all the way to Alberta and Saskatchewan.

Wonder if the yucca moth can recover populations and migrate north?
Or is that hoping for too much.

Barb

canadianplant · Post by **canadianplant** » Mon Sep 24, 2012 12:31 pm

You need to try to find a place to order some yucca moths, and plant some yucca for them barb

Paul Ont · Post by **Paul Ont** » Mon Sep 24, 2012 4:08 pm

We have the moth here in Ontario (it will not pollinate glauca, but has moved north with filamentosa. Annoying for making hybrids).

Interesting area Erik, I have some OK sourced Echinocereus, wonder if it's the same area?

igor.glukhovtsev · Post by **igor.glukhovtsev** » Tue Sep 25, 2012 3:19 am

Paul Ont wrote:We have the moth here in Ontario (it will not pollinate glauca, but has moved north with filamentosa. Annoying for making hybrids).

I had have seeing many plants of glauca with the seed pods in Toronto that time when I was living there.