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Caroxylon imbricatum

Caroxylon imbricatum
Photo: Krzysztof Ziarnek, Kenraiz, CC BY-SA 4.0

Caroxylon imbricatum is a small, spreading desert shrub (also called Salsola imbricata) of the amaranth and beet family, native to Saharan Africa, Arabia and southwestern Asia. It thrives in hot, dry, open ground and is rarely grown as an ornamental, so care guidance is mainly for dry, sunny conditions with minimal water.

Family
Amaranthaceae (Amaranth & beet family)
Grows as
Shrub
Light
Full sun
Water
Water sparingly and let the soil dry fully between waterings; it tolerates drought well.
Soil
Sandy or gritty, free-draining soil; tolerates poor, alkaline or mineral-rich soils.
Temperature
Hot, arid conditions suited to desert climates; protect from frost, as it is not cold-hardy.
How easy
Easy
Native range
Sahara & Sahel to W. India
Climate
desert or dry shrubland

About

Caroxylon imbricatum, synonym Salsola imbricata, is a small species of shrub in the family Amaranthaceae. It grows in deserts and arid regions of north Africa, the Arabian Peninsula and southwestern Asia.

Where it grows

This plant has a widespread distribution across the desert belt of Saharan Africa, the Arabian Peninsula, southern Iran, Pakistan, Afghanistan and northwestern India. It typically grows in disturbed areas such as runnels, washes, dry wadis, eroded slopes and coastal cliffs. It grows on various soil types and is a ruderal species, colonising fallow land and over-grazed pastures.

Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Caroxylon imbricatum by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.

The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.

Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.

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