There are several species, some with large, bright-yellow flowers, but _A. greggi_ is the most common and occurs throughout all of the deserts of the Southwest, at elevations below 4,000 feet, often forming thickets along streams and washes. Flowers, like pale yellow, fuzzy caterpillars, are one of the important sources of nectar for honeybees, the trees being alive with insects during the period of heaviest blooming in April and May. In mid-August, the light green fruit pods begin to turn reddish and, if abundant, make a colorful display. Seeds of the Catclaw were at one time widely used as food by the Indians of Arizona and Mexican tribes. They were ground into meal and eaten as mush or cakes. Catclaw is one of the most heartily disliked plants in the Southwest, especially by riders and hikers, because of the strong thorns which tear clothing and lacerate the flesh. YELLOW [Illustration: Ephedra trifurca E. antisyphilitica] Common Names: MORMON-TEA, BRIGHAM-TEA, JOINTER, (_POPOTILLA_), (_TEPOSOTE_), (_CANATILLA_) Arizona and Texas deserts: (_Ephedra trifurca_). Pale yellow. Spring. California desert: (_Ephedra californica_). Pale yellow. Spring. Jointfir family. Size: Harsh, stringy perennials, from 2 to 10 feet tall and sometimes 5 or 6 feet in diameter. Apparently leafless, these common Southwestern shrubs do have leaves, although they are reduced to tiny scales. The harsh, stringy stems are green to yellow-green and, when dried, were used with the flowers in making a palatable brew, particularly by the Utah pioneers; hence the names Mormon-tea and Brigham-tea. The beverage was also popular with Indians and settlers in treating syphilis and other afflictions, as it contains tannin and certain alkaloids. Flowers are small, pale yellow, and appear in the spring at which time the plants are quite noticeable, and attract large numbers of insects. YELLOW [Illustration: Heterotheca subaxillaris] Common Names: TELEGRAPH PLANT, CAMPHOR-WEED Arizona and Texas deserts: (_Heterotheca subaxillaris_). Pale yellow. March-November. Sunflower family. Size: Grows 2 to 6 feet tall. The flowers are not particularly attractive, but become conspicuous as the seed-heads develop, because of the white, densely-haired tufts. Stems are tall and straight “like telegraph poles,” and the crushed leaves give off a slight camphor-like odor. Although the plant occurs from the east coast across the southern portion of the United States, it is found in the desert at elevations between 1,000 and 5,000 feet. Camphor-weed is a tall, coarse, robust, straight-stemmed plant which is abundant and conspicuous along roads and ditchbanks, and in the open desert following winters of heavy precipitation.