Arizona Lacepod
Dermatophyllum arizonicum

GROWING CONDITIONS
AN EXPLANAITION OF TERMS USED

SUN full to part sun
WATER moderate to low
SOIL well-drained soil is a must—avoid tight clay soils
HARDINESS hardy to about 10°F
BASIN high zone
CONTAINER cranky in containers
NUTRITION low to moderate
MAINTENANCE don’t freak out when the genista broom moth makes the plant look ugly for a minute—the foliage will grow back and look better than before. As the tree gets older this damage is less extensive or noticeable

ECOLOGY
Flowers attract various nectar-seeking insects. Larval host for genista broom moth (Uresiphita reversalis).

ETHNOBOTANY
Unknown. A related species, Texas mountain Laurel (Dermatophyllum secundiflorum) is known to be used for ceremonies (psychoactive alkaloids are present in the seeds but are dangerously poisonous). Seeds also used for necklaces—some poisonings have been known by people who sucked on the beads.

NATURAL DISTRIBUTION
Native to slopes of desert mesas and foothills in desert mountains. 2000-5000 ft. Optimal habitat is apparently more moist sites with north or northeast exposures in northwestern and southeastern Arizona, with a few disjunct populations in southwestern Texas; and other, small isolated populations in Nuevo Leon and Coahuila, Mexico. Slopes of desert mesas and foothills in desert mountains. 610-1500 m elevation. Optimal habitat is apparently more moist sites with north or northeast exposures. Seedling survival past May or June is infrequent and is probably limited to moist microsites.

TAXONOMY AND NAME
This species is in the Fabaceae, the legume family. There are 6 species native to southwestern North America from western Texas to New Mexico and Arizona in the United States, and south through Chihuahua, Coahuila, and Nuevo León in northern Mexico.
Formerly known as Sophora arizonica.
Dermatophyllum seems to mean “skinlike-leaf” perhaps related to the smoothness of the foliage. The species name, arizonicus, refers to where it is mostly endemic, in Arizona.