I went for a walk today in the desert behind Nitsitapiisinni. It was a beautiful day with bright sun and a clear blue sky that goes on forever beyond the mountains in the distance. The ground was like a black and brown terrazzo floor more spectacular and more beautiful than any palace. The material is volcanic. Just lying there it tells a tale of a violent fiery power beyond our imagination. Looking around at the circle of low lying mountains of volcanic material I can't help but wonder if we are camped in the middle of a giant caldera. It wouldn't be surprising since the southwest has hundreds of ancient caldera that have been filled in with volcanic debris and erosion. Every once and a while there is a glitter of white. Beautiful white quartz. In the area just 40 miles south of us there is more quartz than dark lava. The ground is covered with gigantic chunks of the beautiful crystal. Quartz and gold go together. This is actually where the gold rush started and there's a mine just a few miles up the road from us. Some are still active today.
The area around us is showing the impact of human activity. There's one lone barrel cacti about fifty yards south of us. It found a place near a wash where it has water and is somewhat protected from the dust kicked up by the nearby road. The Bigelow Sage, Artemisia bigelovii, is here. It seems to be able to co-exist with the toxic Creosote, but they do keep their distance. Their iconic dusty green-grey leaves and yellow pansy like flowers dot the landscape. Some are blooming.
What struck me most was the magnificent, ubiquitous creosote. This plant was the local pharmacy for ancient peoples who enjoyed a rich life here. Many times I have commented in blogs on the wonderful analgesic, antiseptic, antiviral and antibiotic properties of Creosote. These have all been confirmed by modern science plus there is research into possible cancer fighting properties. One of the reasons I am out here is to collect creosote to make an arthritis salve. I take only one small sprig off of each plant so that I don't damage any of them.
Creosote is an unbelievably hearty plant. It is sometimes the only plant able to grow in habitat that has been severely damaged by human activity. I'm sure that is why it is the dominant plant here. It is exceptionally drought resistant and can live without rain for over two years. In Big Bend National Park it was found to have done quite well during a serious drought but started to die off during an unusually wet season.
All of this is pretty remarkable, but we're just getting started. One of the most remarkable features of Creosote is its' longevity. It has two root systems to gather moisture which, like the cactus, it stores. One root is a tap root that can go as much as ten feet deep. The other is a shallow network that spreads out as much as fifty square yards around the plant. The plant also clones itself. There is a plant in the Mojave Desert that radiocarbon dating shows to be 11,700 years old, and one near Yuma that is 18,000 years old. If you consider these clones to be a part of the same plant, these Creosote bushes are the oldest living thing on earth!
How can we not admire such a plant?! I find myself thanking each plant as I cut a small branch for my salve. I wonder if the ancient inhabitants of this land felt the same. They had a much deeper and personal relationship with the land, plants and animals around them. Most tribes thanked the spirit of an animal they killed for food for feeding them.
I must admit to being in awe of the Creosote bush. I realize that there are many other plants and animals here who are amazing in their development and adaptation. What I learn is that they have all adapted to their environment and become a part of nature's balance thereby not just surviving but thriving. Is this not a lesson for us? We do not attempt to adapt but try to overcome and control nature. Despite our growing population we are a dying species. Our overpopulation is one of the things that is killing us. If we do not change we will soon be gone. We need to give up the notion that we are the most important and most intelligent living thing on earth and realize that there are plant and animal species that have survived hundreds of thousands of years before we showed up. We need to return to being a part of nature and learn from all living things. The nature of our future is totally dependent upon the future of nature.
Good night and may your morrow be amazing.
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