National Geographic
Dark clouds rolling across the desert landscape is a rare sight: AlUla’s tranquil, pure blue skies are turned grey. But with this dramatic dulling comes the promise of life. The vast deserts of Arabia are not as barren as they seem, and with those thick dark clouds, comes the spring rains. Plants that have lain dormant to escape the searing sun and heat, are tempted back to life by water. There are more than 2,000 species of flora in Saudi Arabia, from tall date palms to delicate flowers, and many of these amazing plants have evolved adaptations that help them thrive in the arid environment.
Small leaves are common among desert plants, the smaller surface area keeping them cooler and minimizing the moisture lost during photosynthesis. Similarly, some have a thick, waxy covering on their leaves and stems that reduces temperature and evaporation, while having tiny spines or hairs provides shade and disrupts the flow of drying winds. Underground, having widespread and shallow root systems allow plants to make the most of rainfall; others have developed deep taproots to reach water trapped far below the surface.
Life has found unique ways to adapt to even the seemingly harshest environments. These unique adaptations make the desert come alive. From rocky outcrops to sandy dunes, trees, shrubs, and bushes, remind us that the desert is not dead: but it’s the blooms of AlUla’s desert wildflowers that often appear most remarkable. And each has a colorful story to tell.
The Desert Bouquet
In the desert, clumps of dense green foliage erupt from the stone-strewn landscape, each rounded mound dotted with dozens of vibrant yellow flowerheads. Fragrent oxeye (Asteriscus graveolens), is a relatively common sight across AlUla—and a welcome one. Its strikingly bright yellow flowers attract wildlife, especially insects, and its aromatic peach-scented leaves have long been harvested by the Bedouin. The leaves are collected in the spring and used to make peach-flavored infusions and traditional medicines. Indeed, scientific studies have confirmed its antioxidant, antibacterial, and anti-fungal qualities that make it useful to the skincare industry. It may even help treat diabetes, liver damage, and cancer with fragrant oxeye extract being considered for development into a chemotherapy drug.
Delicate Life Giver
Half buried in the sand, several slender grey-green stems stretch across the dusty ground supporting a scattering of delicate light purple flowers. Sleisla (Eremobium aegyptiacum), is a woody herb with a hairy and sticky stem that catches the sand, keeping the plant covered. It is so effective that sleisla is planted to help stabilize shifting sands. But neither this nor its sharp thorns protect it from animals: Sleisla is a popular food for grazing livestock, including the camels that roam AlUla’s desert. Beyond fodder, the stems of sleisla are boiled in water and the strained liquid used as a diuretic to help with high blood pressure, and its medicinal properties could even help combat Alzheimer’s disease.
Despite having sharp thorns and sticky stems that keep the plant half buried in the sand, Sleisla is still a favorite fodder crop for animals that graze in the desert, including camels.
Photograph by French Agency for AlUla Development (Afalula)
Herbs of Hidden Strength
During the first three months of the year, the sandy dunes of the desert are interrupted by an explosion of daisy-like blooms. Negev chamomile (Anthemis deserti) has an unseen superpower. To thrive in the deep sands of the open desert, this remarkable herb has developed a very long and extensive root system to seek out water while its small size helps it withstand the desiccating desert winds. This makes it as tough as it is beautiful. Its showy white and yellow daisy-like flowers have seen it transplanted from the desert to ornamental gardens and parks around the world. But to desert dwellers and modern science, the true value of negev chamomile is its medicinal properties—dried and often crushed into a powder, it has long been used as an anti-inflammatory and to relieve pain.
Beyond carpeting the sand dunes of the desert with daisy-like floral blooms, Negev chamomile has valuable medicinal properties, being used as an anti-inflammatory and for pain relief.
Photograph by French Agency for AlUla Development (Afalula)
The Tree of a Thousand Uses
With Moringa peregrina, AlUla’s blooms take to the trees. Its sweetly scented light pink flowers form clouds of color in the wispy canopy, while hundreds of foot-long seedpods dangle from its branches. It’s an extraordinary sight, and one of AlUla’s most precious commodities. Along with a strong spiritual and cultural importance, and its nutritional value as a source of food and flavoring, almost every part of the moringa tree has been used as a medicine. It has been used to treat everything from burns and wounds to fevers and stomach disorders to skin conditions and mental health in a medical record documented across ancient Greece, Rome, Egypt, and India. Today, nearly 100,000 moringa trees are cultivated in AlUla for their oil which is used to make exquisite perfumes and premium cosmetics.
For thousands of years almost every part of the Moringa tree has been used as a medicine, treating everything from burns to fevers to mental health conditions. Today it is cultivated for its oil, used in luxury perfumes and cosmetics.
Photograph by French Agency for AlUla Development (Afalula)
From Water Comes Life
A small patch of desiccated flowers interrupts the gray-brown soil of the harrat, the volcanic plateau that rises high above the sandstone valleys of AlUla. Baked by the sun and battered by the winds, the plant appears mummified and lifeless. But it’s not. And in the most extraordinary way. The true rose of Jericho (Pallenis hierochuntica) is a resurrection plant, famed for its ability to survive extreme dehydration and long periods of drought to come back to life with a few drops of water, stimulating the sudden appearance of yellow florets. It is a minor desert miracle, and an incredible example of adaptation.
And just like adding water to the seemingly lifeless roots of Pallenis hierochuntica, we find the desert is rich with biodiversity. Much of this flora and fauna is highly sensitive to habitat loss and climate change, and the Royal Commission for AlUla is embarking on remarkable work to protect these delicate species and rewild ecosystems. Amongst them is the 1,500sq km protected area of Sharaan Nature Reserve. Here the environment is being restored, building rich ecosystems. And it all starts with the plants. The Royal Commission for AlUla has planted over 100,000 native species into Sharaan, starting with acacia trees to provide essential shade for smaller plants including seven species of grass. As the landscape returns to its natural splendor, wildflowers will become ever more abundant and the deserts of AlUla will bloom even more brightly.
Journey through time to discover the rich history of AlUla here.
