Betty Jesse, age 12, of Plymouth, Mass., for her question:

What is a Joshua tree?

The early Mormons named the Joshua tree because it reminded them of the prophet Joshua, urging his people on to the promised land. The Mormons who settled in California saw many of these trees on their Journey east through the California desert to join Brigham Young in Salt Lake City.

The Joshua tree is a relative of the desert yucca plants, well able to support itself in the driest of our southwestern deserts. Unlike the yuccas, however, it branches out into a good sized shade tree. Its foliage grows in spiky, green grey tufts. It is this foliage which gave the tree its name. To the Mormons, the green grey tufts looked like the beard of some ancient prophet and the ragged branches seemed to be uplifted in prayer.