Desert Cat's Claw Tree
The cat claw or devil's claw acacia will be a welcome addition in your garden if you're looking to adopt a piece of the desert. This tree requires very little water, making it an ideal choice for xeriscaping in water-poor areas. Manageably compact in a border or gloriously tall as a centerpiece, the cat claw acacia will attract butterflies to fascinate you and your family all summer. Does this Spark an idea?
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Description
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Cat claw acacia (Acacia greggii) is a desert tree or shrub that can grow to sizes ranging from 3 feet to 25 feet in height and width depending on the amount of moisture available to it. Its leaves are small and gray-green in color. As the cat claw acacia is semi-deciduous, in a sufficiently chilly winter it will shed most of its upper leaves and some of the lower ones as well. It's also drought-decidious; it may lose some leaves in the hot summer months in order to conserve moisture. In the spring, it produces 2-inch spikes bearing cream-colored flowers.
It's the quarter-inch thorns that give this desert tree its popular name. They curve back just like the claws of a cat.
Habitat
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Hardy to 0 degrees, the cat claw acacia grows widely throughout the Sonoran, Mohave, Colorado and Chihuahuan Deserts of the southwestern United STates and northern Mexico. You'll find it in low-elevation washes and along slopes up to 5,000 feet.
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Medicinal Uses
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Many parts of the cat claw acacia have therapeutic uses. The Native Americans used to use cat claw for their horses' sore backs and flanks. The pods treat conjunctivitis ("pink eye"), and a tea of powdered pods and leaves remedies diarrhea and dysentery. The powder, applied straight, stops superficial bleeding and eases diaper rash. The tea made from the flowers and leaves acts as a digestive anti-inflammatory, a sedative and a hangover cure. The root tea helps calm a dry, raspy cough.
Other Products
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Native peoples of the Americas ground up the seeds of the cat claw acacia and made cakes from the resulting flour. In Mexico, a substance much like gum Arabic is extracted from the trunk.
Reasons For Planting
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The cat claw acacia makes a good wildlife habitat tree. Mule deer, rabbits, rodents and birds feed on its foliage, fruits and seeds.
Planted at the border of your garden or yard, the cat claw acacia makes a good barrier plant. It can be trained over time to remain compact, its trunk taking on an intricate shape. Otherwise, the tree requires little maintenance and can survive on as little as one or two waterings a month in the summer. Its flowers will attract butterflies to your garden in great number. If you keep bees, the nectar of the cat claw acacia flowers makes an excellent honey.
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