Larrea tridentata
Larrea tridentata at Furnace Creek, Death Valley, California.
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
(unranked):	Angiosperms
(unranked):	Eudicots
(unranked):	Rosids
Order:	Zygophyllales
Family:	Zygophyllaceae
Genus:	Larrea
Species:	L. tridentata
Binomial name
Larrea tridentata (DC.) Coville[1]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Larrea tridentata

Larrea tridentata is known as Creosote bush as a plant, chaparral as a medicinal herb,^[2] and as "gobernadora" in Mexico, Spanish for "governess," due to its ability to secure more water by inhibiting the growth of nearby plants. In Sonora, it is more commonly called "hediondilla." ^[3]

It is a flowering plant in the family Zygophyllaceae. The species is named after J.A. Hernandez de Larrea, a Spanish clergyman.^[4]

Distribution[link]

Larrea tridentata is a prominent species in the Mojave, Sonoran, and Chihuahuan Deserts of western North America, and its range includes those and other regions in portions of California, Arizona, Nevada, Utah, New Mexico and western Texas in the United States, and northern Chihuahua and Sonora in Mexico. The species grows as far east as Zapata County, Texas, along the Rio Grande River southeast of Laredo near the 99th meridian west.^[5]

Description[link]

Larrea tridentata is an evergreen shrub growing to 1 to 3 metres (3.3 to 9.8 ft) tall, rarely 4 metres (13 ft). The stems of the plant bear resinous, dark green leaves with two opposite lanceolate leaflets joined at the base, with a deciduous awn between them, each leaflet 7 to 18 millimetres (0.28 to 0.71 in) long and 4 to 8.5 millimetres (0.16 to 0.33 in) broad. The flowers are up to 25 millimetres (0.98 in) in diameter, with five yellow petals. Galls may form by the activity of the creosote gall midge. The whole plant exhibits a characteristic odor of creosote, from which the common name derives.^[4]

King Clone, the 11,700 years old Creosote Bush ring in the Mojave Desert. California.

Oldest plants[link]

As the Creosote Bush grows older, its oldest branches eventually die and its crown splits into separate crowns. This normally happens when the plant is 30 to 90 years old. Eventually the old crown dies and the new one becomes a clonal colony from the previous plant, composed of many separate stem crowns all from the same seed.^[6]

King Clone[link]

The "King Clone" creosote ring is another plant of the oldest living organisms on Earth. It has been alive 11,700 years, in the central Mojave Desert near present day Lucerne Valley, California. This single clonal colony plant of Larrea tridentata reaches up to 67 feet (20 m) in diameter, with an average diameter of 45 feet (14 m).^[7][8][9] King Clone was identified and the 11,700 years old age, determined by Radiocarbon dating, was first documented by Frank Vasek, a professor at the University of California, Riverside.^[9][10] It is within the Creosote Rings Preserve of the Lucerne Valley and Johnson Valley.^[9]

Habitat[link]

Creosote bush is most common on the well-drained soils of bajadas (alluvial fans) and flats. In parts of its range, it may cover large areas in practically pure stands, though it usually occurs in association with Ambrosia dumosa (burro bush or bur-sage). Despite this common habitat, creosote bush roots have been found to produce chemicals that inhibit the growth of burro bush roots, and much of their relationship is currently unexplained. Such chemicals, however, have failed to explain the peculiar regularity in the spacing of individual plants within a stand.

Creosote bush stands tend to resemble man-made orchards in the even placement of plants. Originally, it was assumed that the plant produced some sort of water-soluble inhibitor that prevented the growth of other bushes near mature, healthy bushes. Now, however, it has been shown that the root systems of mature creosote plants are simply so efficient at absorbing water that fallen seeds nearby cannot accumulate enough water to germinate, effectively creating dead zones around every plant.^{[citation needed]} It also seems that all plants within a stand grow at approximately the same rate, and that the creosote bush is a very long-living plant.

Desert adaptation[link]

A young Larrea tridentata plant

Contributing to the harshness of the germination environment above mature root systems, young creosote bushes are much more susceptible to drought stress than established plants. Germination is actually quite active during wet periods, but most of the young plants die very quickly unless there are optimal water conditions. Ground heat compounds the young plants' susceptibility to water stress, and ground temperatures can reach upwards of 70°C (160°F). To become established, it seems the young plant must experience a pattern of three to five years of abnormally cool and moist weather during and after germination. From this, it can be inferred that all the plants inside a stand are of equal age.

Mature plants, however, can tolerate extreme drought stress. In terms of negative water potential, creosote bushes can operate fully at -50 bars of water potential and have been found living down to -120 bars, although the practical average floor is around -70 bars, where the plant's need for cellular respiration generally exceeds the level that the water-requiring process of photosynthesis can provide. Cell division can occur during these times of water stress, and it is common for new cells to quickly absorb water after rainfall. This rapid uptake causes branches to 'grow' several centimeters at the end of a dry season.

Water loss is reduced by the resinous, waxy coating of the leaves, and by their small size which prevents them from heating up above air temperature (which would increase the vapor pressure deficit between the leaf and the air, and thus would increase water loss). Plants do drop some leaves heading into summer, but if all leaves are lost, the plant will not recover. Accumulation of fallen leaves, as well as other detritus caught from the passing wind, creates an ecological community specific to the creosote bush canopy, including beetles, millipedes, pocket mice, and kangaroo rats.

Uses[link]

A Larrea tridentata flower

Native American medicinals[link]

Larrea tridentata was used by Native Americans in the Southwest as a treatment for many maladies, including sexually transmitted diseases, tuberculosis, chicken pox, dysmenorrhea, and snakebite.^[11] The shrub is still widely used as a medicine in Mexico. It contains nordihydroguaiaretic acid.^[12]

Herbal supplements and toxicity[link]

Larrea tridentata is often referred to as chaparral when used as a herbal remedy and supplement; however, it does not grow in the synonymous plant community chaparral.^[13] The United States Food and Drug Administration has issued warnings about the health hazards of ingesting chaparral or using it as an internal medicine, and discourages its use.^[14] In 2005, Health Canada issued a warning to consumers to avoid using the leaves of Larrea species because of the risk of damage to the liver and kidneys.^[15].

In literature and popular culture[link]

• In the book The Land of Little Rain the author Mary Hunter Austin wrote that the desert of the Death Valley "begins with the creosote."
• In the classic science fiction series Dune by Frank Herbert, the Fremen inhabitants of the planet Arrakis rub the juices of the creosote bush into the palms of their hands to prevent water loss through the skin.
• King Creosote, is a nickname of an independent singer-songwriter from Fife, Scotland.
• In the 2005 film Kingdom of Heaven, Orlando Bloom's character Balian utters the line "A spark and a creosote bush, there is your Moses, there is your religion", suggesting that the burning bush in the Bible was a simple creosote bush being sparked by a thrown rock.

See also[link]

• List of long-living organisms
• Jurupa Oak

References[link]

External links[link]

• "Creosote Bush". US National Park Service. http://www.nps.gov/jotr/naturescience/creosote.htm. 
• "Larrea tridentata". Jepson Flora Project. Berkeley, CA: University of California. http://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/cgi-bin/get_JM_treatment.pl?Larrea%20tridentata. 
• "Larrea tridentata". Dr. Duke's Phytochemical and Ethnobotanical Databases. Germplasm Resources Information Network - GRIN. http://sun.ars-grin.gov:8080/npgspub/xsql/duke/plantdisp.xsql?taxon=541. 
• "Larrea tridentata". Fire Effect Information System. US Forest Service. http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/plants/shrub/lartri/all.html. 
• "King Clone, The World's Oldest Living Thing". Botanical Record-Breakers. Waynesworld. http://waynesword.palomar.edu/ww0601.htm. 

photo links

• "Creosote bush in desert landscape". EPA. http://www.epa.gov/nerlesd1/land-sci/photo05.htm. 
• "Larrea tridentata Photos". Suu.edu. http://www.suu.edu/faculty/martin/creosotebush/creosotebush.htm. 
• "Larrea tridentata". CalPhotos. Berkeley, CA: University of California. http://calphotos.berkeley.edu/cgi/img_query?query_src=photos_index&where-taxon=Larrea+tridentata. 
• "Creosote Bush – Pictures and Information". Blackturtle. http://www.blackturtle.us/DV_PLANTS/CREOSOTE. 

This article includes a list of references, but its sources remain unclear because it has insufficient inline citations. Please help to improve this article by introducing more precise citations. (February 2008)

Sir John Malcolm
Governor of Bombay
In office 1 November 1827 – 1 December 1830
Monarch	George IV William IV
Governor General	The Earl Amhurst Lord Bentinck
Preceded by	Mountstuart Elphinstone
Succeeded by	The Earl of Clare
Personal details
Born	2 May 1769 Burnfoot, Dumfriesshire, Scotland
Died	30 May 1833(1833-05-30) (aged 64) London, England
Nationality	British
Occupation	Soldier, Statesman, Historian
Military service
Allegiance	United Kingdom
Service/branch	Madras Army
Years of service	1782–1833
Rank	Major-general
Battles/wars	Third Anglo-Mysore War Fourth Anglo-Mysore War

Major-general Sir John Malcolm (2 May 1769 – 30 May 1833) was a Scottish soldier, statesman, and historian.

Early life[link]

Born at Burnfoot, Dumfriesshire, Malcolm was the son of George Malcolm, a gentleman farmer of Eskdale and Burnfoot. Jock, as he was then known, was one of the four Malcolm brothers who attained knighthoods or baronetcies in the service of the British Empire. In 1782, through the influence of the Johnstones of Alva, Jock Malcolm entered the service of the East India Company as a cadet, leaving from London to Madras.

In his early years at Madras, Jock Malcolm was 'not a prodigy of virtue'. He was known as 'Boy Malcolm' for many years, which his biographer explained was due to there being 'something so open and joyous in his manner; so active and so frolicsome'. He was a fine horseman and a crack shot, but like so many other young officers he soon found himself in debt. A relation in London forwarded him £200 but his brother intercepted it so that he may learn the hard way.

A part of his success is to be ascribed to the zeal with which he applied himself at first to study the manners and languages of the east. Having distinguished himself at the siege of Seringapatam in 1792, he was appointed by Lord Cornwallis to the situation of Persian interpreter to a British force serving with a native prince. In 1795, on his return from a short visit to his native country, on account of his health, he performed some useful services in General Clarke’s expedition at the Cape of Good Hope, for which he received the thanks of the Madras government, and was appointed secretary to the commander-in-chief.

In 1797, he was made captain; and from that time to 1799, he was engaged in a variety of important services, terminating at the fall of Seringapatam, where he highly distinguished himself. He was then appointed joint secretary with captain (afterwards Sir Thomas) Munro, to the commissioners for settling the new government of Mysore. In the same year, he was selected by Lord Wellesley to proceed on a diplomatic mission to Persia, where he concluded two treaties of great importance, one political, and the other commercial; returning to Bombay in May, 1801. His services were acknowledged by his being appointed private secretary to the governor-general. In January, 1802, he was raised to the rank of major; and on the occasion of the Persian ambassador being accidentally shot at Bombay, he was again entrusted with a mission to that empire, in order to make the requisite arrangements for the renewal of the embassy. As plenipotentiary for the British East India Company, he came into conflict with Sir Harford Jones, the British Ambassador to Persia, which resulted in a number of minor disputes about precedence in the Persian court and the giving and receiving of gifts.^[1] Upon his return to Bombay he was censured by the government for having spent too much on gifts for the members of the Persian court.^[1]

In January, 1803, he was nominated to the presidency of Mysore, and to act without special instructions; and in December, 1804, he was promoted to the rank of lieutenant-colonel. In the June of the following year, he was appointed chief agent of the governor-general, and he continued to serve in that capacity until March, 1806, having successfully concluded several very important treaties during that period.

Malcolm is credited with having introduced the potato to Persia. On his first visit he noted the suitability of the climate to growing this vegetable, and on his second mission to Persia took along thirty bags of seeds, which he distributed as he went, along with notes on how to grow the potato.^[2]

He was employed in many important negotiations and held various distinguished posts, being Ambassador to Persia, Resident of Gwalior (1803–1804) and Governor of Bombay 1827–1830. He was the commander of the British Army which defeated the Holkars who ruled Indore at the Battle of Mahidpur in 1818. After defeating the Holkars he signed the Treaty of Mandsaur with them. It was under this treaty that the British were given the cantonment town of Mhow which is 23 km from Indore.

He was the author of several valuable works regarded as authoritative, viz., Sketch of the Sikh (1812) A History of Persia (1815), Memoir of Central India (1823), Political History of India from 1784 to 1823 (1826), Sketches of Persia (1827 by A Traveller) and Life of Lord Clive (1836). As a writer, Malcolm was a profound influence on the generation of military and diplomatic officials that governed British India in the period before 1857.^[3]

Family[link]

The English delegation at the Court of Fath Ali Shah in 1808: John Malcolm, Harford Jones and Gore Ouseley.

He married in June 1807 Isabella 'Charlotte' Campbell, daughter of Sir Alexander Campbell, Bart., by whom he had five children. He himself was a brother of Sir Pulteney Malcolm. An impressive obelisk commemorating Malcolm's life and achievements stands atop the 300 m Whita Hill on the outskirts of Langholm.

An over life-size statue of Sir John Malcolm by Sir Francis Chantrey is in Westminster Abbey's North Transept.

References[link]

Resources[link]

• John W. Kaye, The life and correspondence of Major-General Sir John Malcolm, G. C. B., late envoy to Persia, and governor of Bombay, from unpublished letters and journals 2 vols., London, Smith Elder and Co. (1856). On line, archive.org
• This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain : Cousin, John William (1910). A Short Biographical Dictionary of English Literature. London, J. M. Dent & Sons; New York, E. P. Dutton.
• Significant Scots
• Leigh Rayment's Historical List of MPs ^{[self-published source?][better source needed]}

External links[link]

• Hansard 1803–2005: contributions in Parliament by John Malcolm