Ajo Mountain Drive Stop 12

The jojoba nut contains a liquid wax used by native people and cosmetic companies for salves.

NPS Photo

Quick Facts

Location:

Mile 11.3 [km 18.2] along the Ajo Mountain Drive

Stop 12

The Essential Jojoba

The waist-high blue-green shrub growing along the sides of the road is jojoba. Tiny flowers grow on the male plants, producing pollen that is wind-deposited onto female plants. The female plants then produce an acorn-shaped seed in summer. These shrubs have adapted to the extreme desert heat by keeping their leaf edges facing the harsh midday sun, thus reducing evaporation of precious water from broad, flat leaf surfaces.

The foliage provides year-round browse for animals like bighorn sheep and whitetail deer. The nuts are consumed by many animals, including squirrels, rabbits, birds, as well as humans. During times of hunger native people would eat the fat-rich seeds to suppress their appetites until food was again available.