Ephedra equisetina
Common name:
Bluestem Joint Fir
Mongolian Ephedra
Mu zei ma huang
Pronunciation:
e-fee-DRA ek-wih-seh-TEE-nah
Family:
Ephedraceae
Genus:
Type:
Broadleaf
Native to (or naturalized in) Oregon:
No
- Shrub with deciduous leaves and evergreen stems, upright, to 3-6 ft (0.9-1.8 m) high, similar spread. Stems blue-green or bluish, stiff and hard, short internodes, 1-2 cm long, 1.5-2 mm thick, finely furrowed. Leaves simple, opposite, brownish, sheath-like, fussed for 3/4 of their length. Male (pollen) cones yellow, solitary or 3-4 per cluster, fussed for 1/3 their length; female (seed) cones opposite at nodes, more or less ovoid at maturity, 9 × 4 mm. Fruits nearly globose, fleshy, red.
- Full sun to partial shade, heat and drought tolerant.
- Hardy to USDA Zone 4 Native range from to central Asia to northwest China.
Click image to enlarge
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plant habit
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stems
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stem with leaf
