Sampling-event and checklist datasets of non-timber forest products and associated vascular flora from ejidos in Zacatecas, Mexico, within the Chihuahuan Desert Ecoregion (2020–2026)

The Chihuahuan Desert in northern Mexico is notable for its rich vascular plant diversity and the significance of non-timber forest products (NTFPs) to local ejido communities. Despite their importance, standardized, accessible biodiversity data from community-managed forests remain limited. Here we present a comprehensive, open-access sampling-event and checklist datasets derived from standardized forest inventories conducted between 2020 and 2026 across twelve ejidos in Zacatecas, Mexico. The datasets encompass 2,629 sampling events, 21,451 occurrence records, and 50,167 measurements covering 129 vascular plant species, including 12 NTFP species. Rigorous spatial and taxonomic validation ensured data quality. These datasets provide a valuable baseline for monitoring biodiversity, informing sustainable community forest management, and supporting ecological research in arid and semi-arid environments of the Chihuahuan Desert. The dataset distinguishes between focal NTFP taxa, measured in detail for forest-management purposes, and associated vascular flora, recorded as complementary presence information either at the plot level or, in some ejidos, as study-level species-richness lists. Harvesting practices in these semi-arid systems generally involve removing specific plant parts rather than entire individuals. Commercially valuable parts include the buds of Agave lechuguilla Torr., cladodes of Opuntia rastrera F.A.C.Weber, branches of Larrea tridentata (DC.) Coville and Flourensia cernua DC., partial aerial biomass of Euphorbia antisyphilitica Zucc., and juvenile agave offshoots for reforestation projects. Because management is not exclusively extractive, this selective harvesting approach may increase the dataset's utility for future management, biodiversity, or ecological analyses.