A Hidden grove of palm trees native to the deserts of Arizona and California has been discovered near Castle Hot Springs. The only previously known stand of native palms in Arizona are in the Kofa Mountains, more than 130 miles west of the new site. The find, by four Arizona scientists, is certain to create wide interest both in scientific circles and among the general public The trees are California fan palms (Washington filifera Wendl) and are the only palms native to the continental United States west of Texas. There are numerous sites of the stately fan palms in California and in Baja California, but the only other recorded site east of the Colorado River is the Kofa Mountains. The palm trees there, notably Palm Canyon in the Kofas, are often visited by backpackers, desert lovers, and tourist. Fan palms are believed by scientist to be remnants of extensive groves of the subtropical tree that once covered much of Arizona and California during the Miocene and Pliocene epochs 25 million years ago. The palms have survived in scattered areas today because the sites have been generally frost-free and have had a constant source of fresh water. The new find is at such a site, called Alkali Springs, on the JL Bar Ranch, a short distance from Castle Hot Springs Resort. The trees are in three narrow canyons so steep that only the tops of the taller trees are visible. Existence of the palms "all in the wild" was first suspected by David E. Brown, small game supervisor of the Arizona Game and Fish Department. Brown, scouting for deer in the fall of 1974, found several palm trees beside Castle Creek, upstream from the resort. Recognizing them as fan palms, Brown suspected that they might be trees that sprouted from seeds washed downstream from some unknown location. However, since the trees were near the Castle Hot Springs road and fan palms have been planted around the resort buildings in the past, Brown knew there was a possibility that someone may have planted the palms beside the road. He enlisted three other scientist to check his findings, try to locate the original stand of palms and to make a search for contemporary and historical accounts of palm tree plantings in Arizona that lasted through 1975. They were Neil B. Carmony, a chemist and history buff; Raynond M. Turner, botanist and author; and Dr. Charles H. Lowe, University of Arizona professor and an ecologist with wide ranging interest. Carmony and Turner are employed by the U.S. Geological Survey and, like Lowe, are Tucson residents. A ground search by Brown, Carmony and Turner in the mountainous terrain near Castle Hot Springs, failed to disclose the parent grove of the native plams. Lowe, hoping that such a location actually existed, hired an airplane and flew over the rugged area and spotted the plams growing in three small canyons a short distance from the road. Although they had directions from Lowe how to find the palms, the searchers had difficulty finding the sites on foot because of the deep and well hidden canyons. Ed Henderson, on whose ranch the palms are located, said he had always been interested in the palms, but he had no idea that they were native palms. The sites, all on patented land, are called Arrowweed Grove, Hidden Palms Grove and Carrizo Grove. Hidden Palms Grove, the largest site, was burned several years ago by Henderson's ranch foreman to rid them of yellowjacket wasp that were stinging the ranch cattle. The trees, naturally fire resistant, were not harmed by the flames. There are 42 palms over 16 feet in height in Hidden Palms, five over 16 feet in Arrowweed, and nine in Carrizo. All together, there are more than 1,400 seedlings in the three groves. The four scientist, who have written an account of the palms in the current issue of the Journal of Arizona Academy of Science, said a search of old Photographs at the Arizona Historical Society in Tucson and the Sharlott Hall Museum in Prescott has convinced them that the trees in the canyons pre-date the palms at Castle Hot Springs. Someone, they speculate, took seedlings from one of the sites and started the fan palms at the resort. In addition, the researchers were able to find two old-time ranchers, Lawton Champie and James B. Norman, who worked and lived at the ranch containing the palms. Both said they remember that the palms were large and mature in the groves between 1910 and 1918. Return to home page |