| Devil's Claw, Proboscidea parviflora ssp. parviflora (Martynia parviflora). Plant Photo Taken September 30, 2006. Date Creek Arizona. |
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| Devil's Claw Flowers. | Devil's Claw Flowers. |
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| Devil's Claw Leaves. | Devil's Claw Leaves. |
| Devil's Claw Fresh Seed Pod. | Devil's Claw Fresh Seed Pods. |
| Devil's Claw Dried Seed Pods. | Devil's Claw Dried Seed Pods. |
Devil's Claw.
We wish to thank Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia for some of the information on this page. We share images and information with Wikipedia. Doubleclaw is a summer annual to 2 feet tall and 2 to 3 times as wide with large, sticky foliage. The flowers have 5 petal lobes and are 1 1/5 inches long and 3/4 inch wide. They are tubular, pinkish to purple with a striped, yellow throat. They are hard to see beneath the foliage. The fruit is very distinctive growing to about 12 inches long with two long, curved prongs, giving it the name devil's claw. The leaves are simple, smooth to slightly lobed, spade like in shape hairy and sticky up to 7 inches long. The flowers bloom from April to Mid - October. The prongs on the fruit easilly grab passing animals as a way of seed dispersal. The dried pods were used in basket-making by native americans. Devil's claws are considered one of the most interesting and unusual plants of North America. Although they are relatively little-known to most gardeners, they have been very important in the culture of many Indian tribes. In Arizona during the 1860s Native Americans found making black designs in their baskets from devil's claw pods. They were even used to make "easy chairs" or "soft couches." Some museums have examples on display!
Quick Notes:
Height: Up to about 2 feet.
Flowers: Tubular pinkish to purple with a striped, yellow throat. The flowers have 5 petal lobes and are 1 1/5 inches long and 3/4 inch wide.
Stalk: Slender, creeping rhizomes; stems mostly 2 - 4 inches tall, sparsely to densely glandular pubescent.
Flowering Time: April to Mid - October.
Fruit: The fruit is an achene with a bristly pappus 0.6 to 0.8 inch long. Each capsule contains about 40 black seeds which are gradually released when the claws split apart.
Seed Pod: about 12 inches long with two long, curved prongs.
Leaves: Simple, smooth to slightly lobed, spade like in shape hairy and sticky up to 7 inches long.
pubescent like the stems.
Found: Native to the Western USA. Normally found in the high desert of Northern Arizona.
Hardiness:
Soil pH requirements:
Sun Exposure:
Elevation: 0 - 6,500 Feet.
Habitat: Arizona to Texas, south to central Mexico. Sandy washes and along roadsides. A xeriscape landscape plant in some places.
Miscellaneous: Flowering & Fruiting Photos Taken September 30, 2006 Date Creek Arizona. Dried Claws Taken October 27, 2005.
Another great resource about Devil's Claw is the pdf article PLANT GUIDE - Devils Claw. Proboscidea parviflora; Contributed by: USDA NRCS National Plant Data Center & UC Davis Arboretum.
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