Kingdom Plantae Family Chenopodiaceae Scientific name Atriplex confertifolia Rank Species | Order Caryophyllales Genus Atriplex Higher classification Saltbush | |
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Similar Saltbush, Atriplex canescens, Sarcobatus, Krascheninnikovia lanata, Grayia spinosa | ||
Atriplex confertifolia (shadscale) is a species of evergreen shrub in the Chenopodiaceae family, which is native to the western United States and northern Mexico.
Contents
Habitat
Shadscale is a common, often dominant, shrub in the lowest and driest areas of the Great Basin. It prefers sandy, well-drained soils and it is tolerant of moderately saline conditions.
Description
The height of Atriplex confertifolia varies from 1–3 feet (0.30–0.91 m). Shadscale fruits and leaves provide important winter browse for domestic livestock and native herbivores. Compared to fourwing saltbush (Atriplex canescens), shadscale has shorter and wider leaves and the fruit does not have four wings (although it may have two wings in a "V" shape).
This species blooms from March to June.
References
Atriplex confertifolia Wikipedia(Text) CC BY-SA