The compositions of carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus and different surface structures in different organs of plants are important factors in their adaptability to the external environment. In this study, plants of Alhagi sparsifolia Shap. of the Cele population in the Tarim Basin, the Toksun population in the Tuotuo Basin, and the Fukang population in the Junggar Basin, were studied. The C, N, and P concentrations in the organs of A. sparsifolia were measured and the surface morphology was observed. A comparative study of these adaptive characteristics in different environments was conducted. The results showed that:(1) There was no significant distribution of C in the same population of A. sparsifolia, N content was highest in leaves and lowest in stems, P content was highest in leaves in the Cele and Fukang populations, there was no significant difference between stems and thorns, and P content in stems of the Toksun population was significantly higher than other organs. (2) Compared with the elemental compositions in the leaves of the three geographical populations, the C and N contents were highest in the Cele population and lowest in Toksun population, and the P content, C:N, C:P, and N:P mass ratios in leaves were similar among the three populations. In the thorns, there was no significant difference in the C content among the three geographical populations, and the N content was greatest in the Fukang population > Cele population > Toksun population. In the stems, there was no significant difference in N content among the three geographical populations, but the content of P in the stems of the Toksun population plants was twice that of the other two populations; this was probably related to the high concentrations of total N, available N, and available P in the Toksun soils. (3) Plants in the Toksun population had a very thick epidermis with very dense waxes, and the stomatal density of each organ was higher than that of the other two populations. Plants of the Cele population had thicker epidermis and wax than those of the Fukang population, but stomatal density was reduced; stomatal density in stems and thorns of the Cele and Fukang populations were not significantly different. Studies have shown that the Cele population of A. sparsifolia was the most suitable for local environmental conditions-the leaves had the highest C and N contents, and the surface structure showed no obvious characteristics of drought stress. Plants of the Toksun population showed characteristics of drought adaptation-the epidermis was thickened, the wax was dense, the stomatal density increased, and the leaves had the lowest content of C and N. Although the content of P in stems of plants of the Toksun population was significantly higher than that of other geographical populations, the ratios of C:N, C:P, and N:P in the leaves of the three populations remained constant:C:N=30.6 ±4.3, C:P=357.4 ±49.9, N:P=12.0 ±2.4, indicating that A. sparsifolia maintains high homeostasis. This may also be an important reason why it can survive in the entire area of Xinjiang Province.