Prunus fasciculata, also known as wild almond, desert almond, or desert peach is a spiny and woody shrub

Shrub

A shrub or bush is distinguished from a tree by its multiple stems and shorter height, usually under 5–6 m tall. A large number of plants may become either shrubs or trees, depending on the growing conditions they experience...

 producing wild almonds, native to the deserts of Arizona

Arizona

Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...

, California

California

California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...

, Nevada

Nevada

Nevada is a state in the western, mountain west, and southwestern regions of the United States. With an area of and a population of about 2.7 million, it is the 7th-largest and 35th-most populous state. Over two-thirds of Nevada's people live in the Las Vegas metropolitan area, which contains its...

 and Utah

Utah

Utah is a state in the Western United States. It was the 45th state to join the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80% of Utah's 2,763,885 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering on Salt Lake City. This leaves vast expanses of the state nearly uninhabited, making the population the...

.

Prunus fasciculata lives many years (is perennial), and drops its leaves (deciduous

Deciduous

Deciduous means "falling off at maturity" or "tending to fall off", and is typically used in reference to trees or shrubs that lose their leaves seasonally, and to the shedding of other plant structures such as petals after flowering or fruit when ripe...

). It prefers sandy or rocky soil on dry slopes and washes up to an altitude of about 2200 m. (7500 feet).
Prunus fasciculata grows up to 2 meters (6 feet) high, exceptionally larger, with horzontally branching (divaricate

Divaricate

Divaricate is a term used in identifying plants describing the pattern of branching. Divaricate branching is roughly horizontal, usually only diverging about 15 degrees upward or downward....

) branches, that may have a small amount of thorns (spinescent).