Rubber Rabbitbrush

Description:

Shrub 3 to 5 ft tall thin light green stems with dense branching. Narrow alternate leaves. Yellow flowers clustered at ends of stems.

Habitat:

Shrub-steppe.

Notes:

Native Americans reportedly used rabbitbrush as a yellow dye, to make a medicinal tea, and for chewing gum. Flowers bloom from August to October as other plants are fading, providing vivid color and a pollen source for insects late in the summer. The shrubs reproduce via an abundance of small, wind-dispersed seeds and can also sprout from the base.