This rare and ancient, desert dwelling tree may be the most punk rock plant this side of the Tertiary.
It doesn’t give a frig about anything: frigid winters, scorching summers
drought, waterlogging, salty and alkaline soils, and especially not The Man. This is the desert poplar.
[sketching sound effects & music]
Hey! I’m Tasha the Amazon and you’re watching Floralogic.
Populus euphratica, otherwise known as desert poplar lives fast and dies young.
In true punk rock fashion, these trees are non-conformists since they are one of the only trees in the world
that naturally grow along river valleys in the dry, unforgiving deserts.
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[Music]
Desert poplar is a deciduous tree that is part of the Salicaceae family, better known as the willows.
It shoots up quickly up to 15 metres tall
and can reach maximum widths of over two meters in the right conditions
These trees are true rebels from root to canopy.
Their trunks are rarely straight, bending at odd angles.
They’re frequently more bushy than tree-y. Even their leaves are heteromorphic, meaning that they don’t conform to a single shape.
Not like those other sell-outs. I’m looking at you, maple!
Desert poplar can be found from North Africa and the Middle East all the way to Central Asia and as far as Western China.
This tree also goes by Euphrates poplar, which comes from the Euphrates River
that flows through Western Asia, the heart of this tree’s wide range.
Desert poplars have been popping up along desert riverbanks in their home habitats since the Tertiary period
which ended around two and a half million years ago.
Some scientists estimate that they’ve actually been around for at least 60 millions years.
The oldest desert poplar stands that we know of are in China’s Taklamakan desert
the second largest shifting-sand desert in the world, within the Tarim Basin.
Here you’ll find the world’s largest distribution of natural desert poplars in the world
with more than half of their entire population living here.
Even though desert poplars live in the desert, they are riparian trees, meaning that they grow on the banks of rivers.
So while you may conjure up images of lush palms shimmering in the distance when you think of a desert oasis
from now on you can also imagine some gnarly poplar trees!
The Tarim River, which flows through the Tarim Basin, is a constantly shifting river
often changing length or even occasionally course depending on conditions.
Thanks to high winds, the desert landscape in Tarim Basin changes more often than my hair!
Not only do the poplar forests here boast the highest plant biodiversity of any desert region in the world
they are essential for holding back further desertification, stabilizing sand dunes and riverbanks and minimizing sandstorms.
After going up against these trees, the wind definitely says “let’s blow this poplar stand”
Eh?
Desert poplars can thank their huge roots for giving the wind a run for its money.
Burrowing 6 to 8 meters underground and spreading out dozens of meters under the surface
these roots grip the sand and soil around them.
Even after the tree has withered and died, the roots still hold on tight.
Their roots place desert poplars squarely in the category of phreatophytes
which are plants that have long roots that tap into the phreatic zone or its fringes.
This is the zone deep underground that is completely saturated with water.
They need these extensive roots to be able to soak up as much water as they can in this dry environment.
Allowing them to live long after the rivers on the surface have dried up.
Water plays a huge role in the growth of desert poplars. When water is abundant, they grow extra quickly
when the supply dries up, their growth slows down.
Water is also how desert poplars sprout their next generations.
In the Tarim Basin, their dandelion-like seeds are carried off by the wind and end up in the water during flood season.
The seeds germinate when they are deposited on the riverbank.
The little seedlings will often sprout in lines or belts showing exactly the outline of the flood waters.
To germinate, the temperature has to be between 25 and 30 degrees celsius, the soil has to be sopping wet
and the water should have very little salt.
If the conditions are juuuust right, these little desert goldilockses have a germination success rate of 80%.
While not classified as a halophyte – plants that can endure extremely salty conditions
desert poplar can grow in soil with 2% salinity and survive in soil that has up to 5% salinity.
To give you an idea of how salty that really is, sea water has a salinity of about 3.5%
For even more context, water that has more than 0.12% salinity is considered undrinkable for humans.
Scientists have managed to unravel the entire genome of the desert poplar
to understand the genes that are responsible for making it such a salt-tolerant Sally.
This work also furthers our understanding of how trees respond to salt stress.
I personally respond to salt stress with some tequila and lime
The ecosystems these poplar forests create are rare and are home to other plants like Russian olive, camelthorn and salt tree
with desert poplar being the keystone species.
Keystone species define or even completely support the entire ecosystem.
Without them, the system would be changed forever or even collapse.
Unfortunately, these unique desert poplar forests are threatened by farming, over-foresting and excessive use of river water for irrigation.
Since the late 50s, the forests in the Taklamakan desert have shrunk by nearly half.
So it looks like The Man really is responsible for the slow death of these desert-loving punk rockers.
So what should we talk about next?
Let me know in the comments, and don't forget to subscribe for new episodes every week!
Bye!
[Music]
Hey! I’m Tasha the Amazon and you’re watching Floralogic. [inaudible noises]
Hey! That was weird.
Oh I didn't see you there. Welcome to my jungle I'm Tasha the Amazon.
In true Punk Rock Fashion these non-conformists..
These trees ARE non-conformist.
Mm-hm
Mm-hmm
Mm-hm
Desert poplars have been popping up along Riverbanks-
[sung] whaaaat
Desert poplars have been popping up along Riverbanks and their home habitat
Wha-ha-ha-ha-ha
Ha-ha-ha-ha
Here you'll find the world's- nope.
It's not my fault!
I'm
Here we go. [grunts]
So while you might conjure up images - whoa
Thanks to high winds... thanks! Bye!
[Colin] We just wanted to give a thanks to the high winds.
Thanks guys! Thanks for blowing!
[blows on mic]
I got the sillies! I got the sillies in me!
To germinate, the temperature has to be between 25 and 30 degrees celsius.
The soil [inaudible]
[random noises]
The soil has to be sopping wet and there should be very little salt in the water.
[inaudible]
[laughing]
Unfortunately, these unique desert forests. BAH.
So what should we talk next?
NOOOO.
So I guess the man really has been responsible for the death of the punk rockers.
Unfortunately these unique [inaudible]
Since the 1950s the deserts of the..gawd damn it!
I did it, I did it