Jojoba: A Natural History and Study of Effects of Environment on Sex Ratio

• Main Author: Cole, Serena L.
• Other Authors: Evans, David A., 1938-2016
• Format: Thesis
• Language: English
• Published: Kalamazoo College 1979
• Subjects: Sperm whale
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10920/22504

v, 17 p. Jojoba (Simmondsia chinensis) is an evergreen shrub of ,the Sonoran Desert of southwestern United States and Mexico. It produces large seeds which contain a liquid wax which has the properties of sperm whale oil. The plant has vast potentials as a cultivate and the liquid wax has a wide variety of possible uses. The effects of environmental conditions on the ratio of male plants to female plants was studied.in the form of a count of incidence of male and of female plants on north-facing slopes (those relatively protected from the sun) and on south-facing slopes (those more exposed to the sun). Male plants are apparently better adapted to the harsh south-face environment than are females. This may be due to greater burden of seed production on the female or the result of some inherent difference in the physiology of the two forms.