Tamarix aphylla H.Karst.

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Tamarisk
Athel Tamarisk
Athel Tree
Athel Pine
Desert Tamarisk
Flowering Cypress
Salt Cedar
Evergreen Saltcedar

In Omani studies: Miller & Morris (1988) wrote that: "The large tamarix, T. aphylla, grows more commonly inland in the major wadis of the drier parts of Dhofar. It can grow to a great size and has a stout central trunk. The name [J: ar eyr] is often used generically for all species of tamarix as well as specifically to refer to this one. (Confusingly, in the western area of Dhofar, some people refer to the tamarind trees that grow there by the same name). The tamarix species that occur in Dhofar are generally further sub-divided locally into [J: otel], for the larger, more trunked species, and [J, DA: terfal or J: ben, beneh - terfal being a name widely used throughout the Middle East for various tamarix species, and one much in use in the mediaeval Muslim sources too] for the other, smaller tamarix which mainly occur closer to ... the coast. The inner bark was often dried, powdered and made into a tisane. The resultant liquid is a dark red-brown colour, and the mouth of anyone who drank it frequently or copiously became similarly stained. The fallen, dried leaves [J: rotel or otel] were collected and stored for use as an oxytoxic to help a woman in prolonged labour or with a retained placenta. The leaves were boiled up in water, left to macerate, and the sieved water given to her to drink. The same dried leaves, crushed to a powder, were used to treat saddle sores and rope burns [J, DA: marh] in pack animals, the powder being sprinkled over the cleaned skin to dry out the wound, prevent infection and speed its healing. The tree produces small amounts of a dark-coloured resin which is edible and has a taste rather reminiscent of frankincense gum. When salt was in short supply, it was possible to use the white salty crust that forms on the leaves as a substitute, by washing and briefly soaking some of the encrusted foliage in the cooking water. This salt though has a rather bitter flavour, and was only used in very small quantities and when nothing else was available. Camels suffering from diarrhea or other stomach complaints were taken to feed on the foliage of these trees in order to thoroughly clear out their stomachs. The diarrhoea intially worsened, but their condition soon improved, and they grew fat and sleek. Camels browse the fresh greenery from choice, whereas goats usually prefer the fallen foliage. Camels are apparently particularly keen on this fodder (and that of the common small herb Cleome droserifolia) when they are being fed on a diet of dried sardines. The few cattle that are herded in the drier areas - of which are taken there to graze when rain fallen outside the monsoon season - generally ignore the tree, but there is a story of four missing cows being discovered at the bottom of a cliff over which they had fallen, in which inhospitable place they had survived for almost a week on a diet of the foliage of this tamarix, the only grazing there available to them. The main supporting pillars [J: ensebet] of animal and human quarters were often made from the trunk and larger branches of this tree. This was a popular wood for building because it is resistant to termites, which are a great problem in wooden structures where this is not taken into account. The wood was much exploited too in the manufacture of lime, used in particular in the plastering of the stone houses of the coastal settlements, as well as for caulking boats. The large pits where the lime was made are still visible in many of the larger river beds, in the eastern area around Sudh and Hasik especially, where the large white friable stones suitable for the manufacture of lime were available in great quantities. These were heated over a period of days layered between the smouldering branches of trees such as these, and then made to crack and disintegrate into a whitish powder by pouring cold water over the smouldering mas of stone and wood. Traces of lime-burning pits are also still visible at the back of the Salalah plain, where the wood of Boscia arabica was plentiful and popular for the making of lime. In the north of Oman dried tamarix twigs were scorched at the fire and crushed to a powder which was then made into a poultice to treat burns". (Ref. Plants of Dhofar). In addition, Pickering & Patzelt (2008) mentioned that: "Wood is termite resistant and used for building". (Ref. Field Guide to the Wild Plants of Oman; 2008).

*Ghazanfar, S. (2003). Flora of the Sultanate of Oman, vol.1: Piperaceae – Primulaceae. Meise, National Botanic Garden of Belgium (Scripta Botanica Begica, Vol. 25). ISBN 90-72619-55-2 ISSN 0779-2387. *https://en.wikipedia.org *Miller, A., Morris, M. (1988). Plants of Dhofar, the Southern Region of Oman: Traditional, Economic, and Medicinal Uses. Published by Office of the Adviser for Conservation of the Environment, Diwan of Royal Court, Sultanate of Oman; ISBN 10: 0715708082 ISSN 13: 9780715708088. *Pickering, H. Patzelt, A. (2008). Field Guide to the Wild Plants of Oman. Kew publishing, Royal Botanic Garden, Kew. ISBN 9781842461778. *Hammer, K. Gebauer, J. Al Khanjari, S. Buerkert, A. (2009). Oman at the cross-roads of inter-regional exchange of cultivated plants. Gene Resour Crop Evol (2009) 56:547-560. Springer Science+Business Media B.V. 2008. DOI 10.1007/s10722-008-9385-z. *POWO (2023). ""Plants of the World Online. Facilitated by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Published on the Internet; http://www.plantsoftheworldonline.org