Soils devoid of termites are more compacted (Elkins et al., 1886), and nitrogen concentrations in the soil surface decrease with depth. This should affect the growth of deep-rooted shrubs. We studied the effects of water supplementation and termite removal on shoot growth of the common Chihuahuan Desert shrub Larrea tridentata to test the hypothesis that reduced infiltration by removal of termites would reduce growth rates of the shrub.