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Baja Desert Thorn
Lycium brevipes
  
5 Nurseries Carry This Plant

About Baja Desert Thorn (Lycium brevipes) 5 Nurseries Carry This Plant Lycium brevipes is a species of flowering plant in the Solanaceae (Nightshade) family known by the common name Baja Desert-thorn. It is native to northwestern Mexico and it occurs in California as far as the Sonoran Desert as well as near the coast and on some of the Channel Islands. It grows in the scrub of desert and coastline. It is also used as a southwestern landscaping plant. This is a bushy, spreading shrub approaching a maximum height of 4 meters but usually less, with many long, thorny, tangled branches. The branches are lined with small, fleshy green leaves up to 1.5 centimeters long and coated with minute hairs. The small cluster consists of tubular flowers roughly 1 to 2 centimeters long including the calyx of sepals at the base. The lavender to nearly white corolla is tiny, funnel-shaped and has 2 to 6 lobes at the mouth. The five stamens and one style protrude from the flower. The fruit is a bright red spherical berry about a centimeter wide containing many seeds. The berries attract birds.
Plant Description
Plant Type
Plant Type
Shrub

Size
Size
3 - 13.1 ft tall
3 - 12 ft wide

Form
Form
Mounding

Growth Rate
Growth Rate
Moderate

Dormancy
Dormancy
Summer Semi-Deciduous

Fragrance
Fragrance
None

Flower Color
Flower Color
Lavender

Flowering Season
Flowering Season
Winter, Spring

Wildlife Supported
 


 
Butterflies & moths hosted ( 4 likely * ) SHOW ALL
*
Hyles lineata Image
White-lined Sphinx Hyles lineataHyles lineata
*
Manduca sexta Image
Carolina Sphinx Manduca sextaManduca sexta
*
Manduca quinquemaculata Image
Five-spotted Hawkmoth Manduca quinquemaculataManduca quinquemaculata
*
Loxostege albiceralis Image
Loxostege albiceralisLoxostege albiceralis

Landscaping Information
Sun
Sun
Full Sun

Moisture
Moisture
Low

Summer Irrigation
Summer Irrigation
Max 1x / month once established

Nurseries
Nurseries
Carried by 5

Cold Tolerance
Cold Tolerance
Tolerates cold to 25° F

Soil Drainage
Soil Drainage
Fast

Soil Description
Soil Description
Typically sandy and rocky. Soil PH: 6.0 - 8.0

Common uses
Common uses
Bank Stabilization, Hedges

Companion Plants
Companion Plants
In coastal or non-Desert gardens use with Shaw's Agave (Agave shawii), Chalk Dudleya (Dudleya pulverulenta), Fingertips (Dudleya edulis), Giant Chalk Dudleya (Dudleya brittonii - a Baja species), California Encelia (Encelia californica), Cliff Spurge (Euphorbia misera), California Sagebrush (Artemisia californica), Chaparral Yucca (Hesperoyucca whipplei), Mojave Yucca (Yucca shidigera), Coast Barrel Cactus (Ferocactus viridescens), Prickly Pear Cactus (Opuntia sp.), Coast Cholla (Cylindropuntia prolifera), Fish Hook Cactus (Mammillaria dioica).

In Desert gardens use with Desert Agave (Agave deserti), Elephant Tree (Bursera microphylla), Desert Lavender (Condea emoryi), Brittlebush (Encelia farinosa or actonii), Barrel Cactus (Ferocactus cylindraceus), Ocotillo (Fouquieria splendens), Chuparosa (Justicia californica), Beavertail Cactus (Opuntia basilaris), Palo Verde (Parkinsonia sp.), Joshua Tree (Yucca brevifolia), and Mojave Yucca (Yucca shidigera)

Maintenance
Maintenance
Because of its tendency to form a tangled thicket, it may be pruned in summer dormancy to improve its shape.

Propagation
Propagation?
For propagating by seed: No treatment; 2-4 mos. stratification may improve germination.

Sunset Zones
Sunset Zones?
7, 8*, 9*, 12, 13, 14*, 15, 16, 18, 19*, 20*, 21*, 22*, 23*, 24*

Natural Setting
Site Type
Site Type
Desert or arid coastal bluffs,slopes and washes

Climate
Climate
Annual Precipitation: 2.4" - 14.9", Summer Precipitation: 0.23" - 1.99", Coldest Month: 44.6" - 63.1", Hottest Month: 68.3" - 89.3", Humidity: 1.79" - 40.51", Elevation: -232" - 4026"

Alternative Names
Common Names: Baja Desert-thorn


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Sources include: Wikipedia. All text shown in the "About" section of these pages is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Plant observation data provided by the participants of the California Consortia of Herbaria, Sunset information provided by Jepson Flora Project. Propogation from seed information provided by the Santa Barbara Botanical Garden from "Seed Propagation of Native California Plants" by Dara E. Emery. Sources of plant photos include CalPhotos, Wikimedia Commons, and independent plant photographers who have agreed to share their images with Calscape. Other general sources of information include Calflora, CNPS Manual of Vegetation Online, Jepson Flora Project, Las Pilitas, Theodore Payne, Tree of Life, The Xerces Society, and information provided by CNPS volunteer editors, with special thanks to Don Rideout. Climate data used in creation of plant range maps is from PRISM Climate Group, Oregon State University, using 30 year (1981-2010) annual "normals" at an 800 meter spatial resolution.

Links:   Jepson eFlora Taxon Page  CalPhotos  Wikipedia  Calflora


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