About
Black sagebrush is a small aromatic shrub and one of the most common shrubs of the western United States, often on calcareous soils.
Care at a glance
- Pet safety
- Not recorded. We have no source on whether this plant is safe for cats, dogs or other pets — that is not the same as safe. Keep it out of reach until you have checked.
- People
- Not recorded.
- Soil
- Often calcareous soils in the wild.
- Mature size
- Usually 20–30 cm, occasionally over 70 cm.
Field notes
Morphology
Small erect shrub, usually 20–30 cm but occasionally over 70 cm, with upright stems from a trunk-like base. Short, narrow green leaves are aromatic, sometimes toothed at the tip, and carry glandular hairs. Flower heads have shiny, oily yellow-green bracts; the fruit is a tiny achene.
Distribution & habitat
From the Mojave Desert mountains of southern California and the Great Basin north to Oregon, Idaho and Montana, east to Wyoming and Colorado and south to Arizona and New Mexico, in forest, woodland and grassland, often on calcareous soils.
Ecology
Reproduces almost entirely by seed, rarely by layering. Hybridises readily with big sagebrush where they meet.
History & etymology
Easily confused with little sagebrush (A. arbuscula) and intermediate hybrids with big sagebrush.
Habitat
- Altitude
- Not recorded
- Altitude class
- —
- Native to
- United States
Cultivation
- Difficulty
- Not recorded
Text adapted from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.
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