Dry Biome

El Cardón Gigante

(Pachycereus pringlei, elephant cactus)

A scientific marvel, a cultural treasure, and a tourist favorite. How can we weave all of the cardón's roles together?

Lizette Ortega '22

Barbasco (Dioscorea mexicana)

The science, labor, and plants behind The Pill

Grace Oh '22

Bullhorn Acacia (Vachellia cornigera)

Economic botany, abortifacients, and ethnobotany

Kai Barreras '22

Butterfly Agave (Agave potatorum)

Liquor, labor, landscape: the butterfly agave

Grace Fang '23

Common Olive (Olea europaea)

An economic treasure, a cultural icon, and a symbol of resistance

Cricket Liebermann '23

Dragon Fruit (Hylocereus undatus)

A superfood and flower

Wenyin Cao '23

Mormon Tea (Ephedra viridis)

Chemistry, bioprospecting and miracle drugs: A tale of two Ephedra species

Natalie O'Hern '22

Queen Victoria Agave (Agave victoriae-reginae)

Stories of indigenous erasure through colonial nomenclature and ornamentalism

Chelsea Chen '22

Twee-blaar-kanniedood (two-leaf-can't-die), or Khurub (Welwitschia)

The plant that shook the Western world with its looks and has since suffered colonial extraction

Zo Shaw '23