Smoke Trees: The Ghosts of the Desert

 I know, it's definitely not a looker. But the Desert Smoke Tree (or Smoketree), Psorothamnus spinosis, is exquisitely adapted to its environment. For some strange reason, I'm drawn to it. It calls to me. Perhaps because it can thrive where few other plants can survive. And perhaps because it often looks desiccated and decimated, and few people give it a second look. To me, it's the quintessential desert plant. Consider this:

• Smoke Trees are extremely drought tolerant.
• They grow almost exclusively in dry, sandy washes that might get flooded with water from a rare desert thunderstorm once or twice a year (or less).
• For their seeds to sprout, the tough hard seed coat must be scarified (which happens when the seeds tumble and scrape along the sand and rocks in a desert wash). Without this scarificiation, the seeds will not sprout. It helps explain why Smoke Trees are found ONLY in desert washes.
• Once scarified, the seed will germinate and send a taproot downward in search of water. At this time, there is no above soil foliage or growth.
• If the taproot finds sufficient moisture, the Smoke Tree sapling begins to grow upward, establishing above ground foliage.
• It grows best where other plants can't survive: In decomposed granite and sandy soils that contain little organic material. A true desert survivor!

Above is a typical Smoke Trees in a desert wash in Joshua Tree National Park. If you are thinking it doesn't look like a tree, I would agree with you. If you're wondering if they are dead, the answer is no, this is just what they look like. Like I said, not a looker.

 

The first time I approached a Smoke Tree, I was surprised that all its branches ended in spines. Sharp spines! Best not to rub up against them.

 

The color of a Smoke Tree is hard to describe. Muted greens, dull orange, and silver, all on the same tree. Strange, ghostly colors that give the impression it dead or dying. Some say that from a distance it looks like rising smoke (hence the name). The trunk is often crooked, with branches going every which way, making the Smoke Tree about as wide as it is high. It's more bush-like than tree-like. And yet, prominent desert painters often include Smoke Trees in their paintings. To my eye, they perfectly evoke the solitude and loneliness of a classic desert landscape.

John Hilton: "The Breath of Spring"

 

John Hilton: "Mountain Landscape"

 

When the Smoke Tree blooms in early summer, it is covered with small, indigo-colored flowers (another name for a Smoke Tree is Indigo Bush). The display is impressive. Bees are highly attracted to the flowers. 

 (Photo credit: LakeHavisuCity.gov)
 

One of the best places to spend some quality time with Smoke Trees in Joshua Tree National Park is... yes, you guessed it... Smoke Tree Wash!

I walk quietly around the Smoke Trees in Smoke Tree Wash and enjoy the solitude. As the sun drops low on the horizon during golden hour, the Smoke Trees pick up the golden light beautifully and really put on a show. They look more like fire than smoke!

 

 

 

 

 

I think I'll hang around in Smoke Tree Wash for sunset and see what happens!!

  

Thanks for stopping by!

Linking with Skywatch Friday.

Time Flies!

 Wow, I can't believe my last post was December 11th!! I never planned to take a blogging break over the holidays. What can I say... Life happens and time flies by!

Lots of cloudy skies and rain in my neck of the woods (Southern CA), which is wonderful. We will indeed be thankful for the rain come this summer. A nice view of the Pacific Ocean and Catalina Island in the above photo. Catalina Island is about 40 miles from the spot where this photo was taken.

 

The Toyon berries always look festive this time of year!

 

For those of you who live in wet climes, the next few photos won't be anything special. Those of us who live in lands of litte rain get excited when we see water droplets on plants. We're strange that way!

 

 

 

Heavy fog, with 30-40' visibility. Normally there's an excellent view from here!

 

 

Prickly Pear fruit.

 

Skeletal remains of Prickly Pear pad.

 

Alien seed pod.

 

 

I usually give my friend here a fist bump as I go by on my hikes, but we both agreed a selfie was in order today. Check out his new cactus fruit necklace in the photo below!

 

Fast moving clouds, Christmas Day, 2025.

 

A rainbow over our backyard fence. I'm sure it means good luck and prosperity for 2026!

 

Wishing you all HAPPY HOLIDAYS and a HAPPY NEW YEAR!!

Linking with Skywatch Friday.

The Last Supermoon of 2025

 It was very much last minute when my wife alerted me about the last supermoon of the year. No chance to drive out to the desert, so I set up camera and tripod in my back yard. I did a search to find out the compass heading for the moon rise, and it looked like it would be rising in the middle of my neighbor's palm trees. That has potential!

So why do moon shots have to be so difficult, anyway?? By the time the moon was rising above the palm trees, it was getting dark outside and the palms were silhouettes (although my eyes could pick out more detail than the camera could). The moon was super-bright, and you end up with this blown out moon shot that looks terrible. It doesn't look like this to my eyes, but this is what the camera sees.

How to fix it? 

1. I put my camera on a tripod and framed the photo, trying to get a nice balanced composition.

2. First, focus on the palm trees (or whatever foreground you are using). If necessary, add a little light. I used a headlamp to light up the palm trees a bit, but a flashlight works too. Take the photo. If the light is too much or too little, adjust and take another photo. You have to be careful not to over do it with the light. I also had my fingers crossed that I wasn't freaking out my neighbors. They might have been wondering why the weirdo next door was shining a powerful light into their backyard at night!

3. Next, without moving the camera, adjust the focus and exposure for the moon. The exposure will be much, much less because the full moon is so bright. Focus will be at or close to infinity. Take a second photo.

4. Layer the palm tree photo with the moon photo in PhotoShop (or similar) and it should give you a nice image with everything in focus and a balanced exposure. It's much closer to what your eyes actually see. Kind of a bummer that you have to go to all this trouble for a moon shot, but it's the only way I know to do it.

Following steps 1-4, here's what I came up with. Look closely and you will even see a few stars! Had the moonrise been earlier in the day, I might have been able to get away with a single image. But when things get dark, the brightness of the moon totally overpowers everything else, and you are forced to blend two photos. 
 

Yesterday morning I noticed a very pretty sunrise, so I grabbed my phone and took a quick shot:

I'm spoiled because I'm usually taking these kinds of photos out in the desert, with a nice open sky. This was taken in my back yard and houses and trees often get in the way. A beautiful sky nonetheless!
 

Also from my back yard, the red hot poker plants are starting to bloom. I love their wild dayglow colors and that they bloom just before Christmas. They're shaped like little miniature Christmas trees!
 

Hiking in the local hills the other day, the moon was setting and barely visible. For these "blue sky" moon shots, a single photo is fine. It's plenty bright out so that the moon doesn't overpower everything else like it does when it's dark. These are iPhone photos.
 

I'll leave you with this video of a turkey vulture (I think?) keeping me company on a recent walk in the local hills. It's interesting to me because I can't remember seeing a turkey vulture locally before (although they are common in the desert).

Thanks for stopping by!!

Linking with Skywatch Friday.

Out on a Ramble Near Geology Tour Road (Part 2)

 We had been hiking all afternoon under mostly grey skies and didn't have much hope for a colorful sunset. As the sky darkend and a few raindrops fell, we started angling our way back in the general direction of the car.

Split rock.

 

Heart rock.

 

This one reminded me of sliced bread, with mustard on the side. I must be hungry!

 

 

How can a seemingly dead plant produce these beautiful flowers??

 

Even long after Nolina blooms have lost all their flowers, they are still photogenic!

 

We finally had a few moments of golden hour sunlight break through the clouds. Mitch and I were focused on these rocks when Nadine said "Look behind you!"

 

Golden light was streaming under the cloud cover. For the next 15 minutes, we were spellbound!

 

 

 

 

 

Nadine hard at work getting the best possible camera angle!

 

 

As the sun set, the light shifted from yellow to pink.

 

A glorious way to end a hike!

  

Thanks for stopping by!!

Linking with Skywatch Friday.