New Mexico state symbols

How to read it

Section 12-3-4 of the New Mexico Statutes, first enacted in 1927 and amended as symbols were added, names them: “The yucca flower is adopted as the official flower”, “The chaparral bird, commonly called roadrunner, is adopted as the official bird” and “The nut pine or pinon tree, scientifically known as Pinus edulis, is adopted as the official tree.” The Secretary of State gives the dates: the yucca on March 14, 1927, and the greater roadrunner (Geococcyx californianus) and the piñon pine on March 16, 1949. The same section makes “The Land of Enchantment” the official nickname and, since 2023, the aroma of green chile roasting the official state aroma.

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The motto on the seal

“Crescit eundo” came with the seal. The Secretary of State says Territorial Secretary W. G. Ritch added the phrase to the design in 1882, and that it has also become the state motto. The territorial legislature adopted that seal in 1887, and a legislative commission adopted the state seal in 1913. Neither source names a separate law adopting the motto.