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Bud
Sagebrush
Common
Name(s):
Bud Sagebrush
Budsage
Bud Sage
Scientific
Name:
Picrothamnus
desertorum Nutt.
Scientific
Name Synonyms:
Artemisia spinescens
(DC.) Eaton
Symbol:
PIDE4
Description:
Life Span: Perennial
Origin:
Native
Season: Deciduous
Growth Characteristics:
A
low growing, highly branched, spiny twigged shrub with a rounded
crown, growing 2 to 18 inches tall. It has a strong odor. It flowers
March to June, reproduces from seed.
Flowers/Inflorescence:
Flower
heads are on short, leafy branches, and are pale yellow.
Fruits/Seeds:
Seed is oblong and densely hairy. Seed production is infrequent
because the flowers bloom quite early and are often damaged by frost.
Leaves: Alternate,
fan-shaped, with 3-5 linear spatulate lobes, which are again divided.
Surfaces are hairy. The buds are large and hairy.
Stems: The
older twigs are rigid, thickened, gray to dark brown and shreddy.
The newer twigs are ascending, hairy, eventually becoming spines.
The trunk is short, gray to brown, and shreddy.
Ecological
Adaptations:
Bud
sagebrush grows on desert mesas, hills, and plains, at elevations
from 4,000 to 6,000 feet. It is common in salt-desert shrub communities.
Soils: Adapted
to a broad range of dry or well-drained soils. It is an indicator
of alkaline soils.
Associated Species:
Winterfat,
shadscale, galleta,
Indian ricegrass.
Uses and
Management:
Budsage
is generally considered a desirable forage species. It is one of
the first shrubs to become green in early spring and is highly palatable
to livestock. On sheep range, it is one of the most palatable forage
plants during late winter and early spring. The early availability
provides high quality nutrition during the lambing season. Light
grazing in late winter and early spring damages the growth of budsage,
and can even lead to its elimination in an area.
Budsage is also an important, palatable, nutritious forage species
for upland game birds, and small and big game.
The pollen of bud sagebrush commonly causes hay fever.
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