Those notorious deserts. How Texas became notorious for its nearly nonexistent deserts (Houston: deal, trees)

[Bobloblawslawblog]

Originally Posted by Frodo2008

Yeah I agree the deserts in America aren't real deserts. I've been to Utah, Nevada and Arizona and these places had a lot of bushes. I don't associate deserts with a lot of plants. My idea of a "real" desert are like the ones you see on TV like the Sahara. When I think of a desert I think of nothing but sand and no plants. I haven't seen that anywhere in America.

There are a few areas in the desert Southwest that are completely barren, like the Imperial Dunes in the California desert just West of Yuma, AZ (where they filmed the Jawa scenes in the first Star Wars movie), in Death Valley, CA, and along the Colorado River valley in AZ, CA, and Southern Nevada.

Not as wide an expanse as the Sahara or the Saudi Arabian desert, but just as barren, sun-baked, and dry. Nothing like that in Texas though.

[ScoPro]

I beg to differ Bob - Google up "Monahans State Park" images.

[Bobloblawslawblog]

Originally Posted by ScoPro

I beg to differ Bob - Google up "Monahans State Park" images.

Yes, and there are sand dunes on Padre Island too. Even more so than in Monahans. Monahans isn't in a true desert. It receives too much rain (13 inches annually). The sand there is kept in place by a root system of Shinoak scrub. It is not caused by dry conditions.

[High_Plains_Retired]

Originally Posted by Bobloblawslawblog

Not as wide an expanse as the Sahara or the Saudi Arabian desert, but just as barren, sun-baked, and dry. Nothing like that in Texas though.

Certainly not as expansive as the Sahara but very close to Texas, I've been on sand dunes on the W.I.P.P site in SE New Mexico that are acres and acres of just bare sand. They are quite beautiful at night with only a full moon and a Coleman lantern shining across them.

[Frodo2008]

That's right Monahans State Park is semi-desert not desert. I've yet to see a place in the U.S. that I really few is hardcore desert. It sounds like there are a few places out there I just haven't been to them. In addition to the Sahara, Saudi Arabia, I heard the Gobi Desert in western China is a real desert. I heard it has sand dunes and is very dry like the Sahara.

[MrJester]

Originally Posted by Bobloblawslawblog

It's rare, but I've even heard people claim that they thought Houston was in the desert. Houston.

Yes, the ignorance is rampant. Some people actually think that the presence of Cactus = "desert". The only part of Texas that strikes me as TRULY desert is the two Westernmost counties (El Paso and Hudspeth). Some of Presidio county as well, but even much of the Trans-Pecos, though definitely dry and rugged, seems more Steppe to me than actual desert. There are even some small pockets of Pine and Juniper forest in the Davis mountains.

Cities like Amarillo and Lubbock are not even close to being desert. That's just the high, grassy plains. More like Kansas than Arizona.

Shhhh...keep it secret! If everyone knows Houston has the same weather and scenery as Northern Florida, they'll be flocking to Houston in droves!

[MrJester]

Originally Posted by Bobloblawslawblog

Yes, and there are sand dunes on Padre Island too. Even more so than in Monahans. Monahans isn't in a true desert. It receives too much rain (13 inches annually). The sand there is kept in place by a root system of Shinoak scrub. It is not caused by dry conditions.

Actually, Tuscon receives about 12 inches annually, YET it still is true desert.

[C24L]

the Trans-Pecos is the only part of the state of Texas that is desert.

[ragnarkar]

Originally Posted by C24L

the Trans-Pecos is the only part of the state of Texas that is desert.

I drove from Los Angeles to Midland last year and the vast majority of that route was desert. The scenery was nearly the same, whether you were in the eastern part of California, Arizona, New Mexico, and even as far east in Texas as Pecos. I think it only started getting noticeably greener once I reached West Odessa or so.

Still, I'm surprised how many people buy into the stereotype that Texas is a big desert. I had a friend visit me in Dallas a month ago and she commented about the surprising abundance of trees there. And on a vacation to Georgia, when I tell people I'm visiting from Texas, they often say something along the lines of you don't see as many trees back home as here, right?

[kemahkami]

Originally Posted by MrJester

Actually, Tuscon receives about 12 inches annually, YET it still is true desert.

The rainfall is more in Tucson than most deserts, but the evapotranspiration is high enough to render the area truly arid. Monahans would probably be true desert if the winters were warmer.