Black saxaul

The saxaul is the “tree” of the Gobi Desert – leafless, with wood so heavy that it sinks in water.

A shrub or low, twisted small tree growing 4–8 m tall, with a thick, gnarled trunk and green, jointed twigs. The leaves are reduced to tiny scales, and photosynthesis is carried out by the green shoots, which limits water loss in the dry climate. The roots reach many metres down to groundwater. It grows on the sands and gravel plains of Central Asia’s deserts, stabilising dunes, and its roots host a parasitic plant prized in medicine, Cistanche deserticola.

Significance in the country

Saxaul scrub “forests” are the only forests of the Gobi – they give shade to camels and shelter to wildlife, and for centuries the hard wood has served nomads as fuel; overcutting means it is now protected in Mongolia.

Where it grows

The Gobi Desert and the semi-deserts of the south: Ömnögovi, Dornogovi, Govi-Altai, Bayankhongor and Dundgovi provinces, and the Dzungarian Gobi in Khovd Province.

More: Wikipedia (en)