Ericameria nauseosa

Ericameria nauseosa is a perennial shrub that can be as short at or as tall as , however it is generally . The leaves, depending on the subspecies, are long and narrow to spatula-shaped. Both the flexible (rubbery) stems and the leaves are greenish-gray with a soft felt-like covering. It blooms from August to October and produces pungent-smelling, golden-yellow flowers. The flower heads are long The shrub reproduces from seeds and root sprouts. ==Taxonomy==

Rubber rabbitbrush was moved from the genus Chrysothamnus to the genus Ericameria in a 1993 paper. The second edition of the Jepson plant manual and the United States Department of Agriculture's Germplasm Resources Information Network have adopted the name Ericameria nauseosa. The specific epithet means 'heavy scented'. Subspecies and varieties Recognized infraspecific taxa from The Plant List with distribution information from Flora of North America • Ericameria nauseosa subsp. consimilis (Greene) G.L.Nesom & G.I.Baird (green form) • Ericameria nauseosa var. arenaria (L.C.Anderson) G.L.Nesom & G.I.Baird – sandstone in Arizona, New Mexico, Utah • Ericameria nauseosa var. arta (A.Nelson) G.L.Nesom & G.I.Baird – Idaho, Oregon • Ericameria nauseosa var. ceruminosa (Durand & Hilg.) G.L.Nesom & G.I.Baird – gravelly arroyos in Mohave Desert of California • Ericameria nauseosa var. juncea (Greene) G.L.Nesom & G.I.Baird – Utah • Ericameria nauseosa var. leiosperma (A.Gray) G.L.Nesom & G.I.Baird – sandy + rocky sites in Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, Utah • Ericameria nauseosa var. mohavensis (Greene) G.L.Nesom & G.I.Baird – scrublands in California, Nevada • Ericameria nauseosa var. nitida (L.C.Anderson) G.L.Nesom & G.I.Baird – dry streambeds in Arizona, New Mexico, Utah • Ericameria nauseosa var. turbinata (M.E.Jones) G.L.Nesom & G.I.Baird – sand dunes in Arizona, Nevada, Utah • Ericameria nauseosa subsp. nauseosa (gray form) • Ericameria nauseosa var. ammophila L.C.Anderson – Colorado • Ericameria nauseosa var. bernardina (H.M.Hall) G.L.Nesom & G.I.Baird – open pine forests in California; Baja California • Ericameria nauseosa var. bigelovii (A.Gray) G.L.Nesom & G.I.Baird – dry slopes in Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, Utah • Ericameria nauseosa var. graveolens (Nutt.) Reveal & Schuyler – plains in Sask.; Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Kansas, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, Dakotas, Oklahoma, Texas, Utah, Wyoming • Ericameria nauseosa var. hololeuca (A.Gray) G.L.Nesom & G.I.Baird – slopes in Arizona, California, Idaho, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah • Ericameria nauseosa var. iridis (L.C.Anderson) G.L.Nesom & G.I.Baird – steep, barren slopes in Sevier County in Utah • Ericameria nauseosa var. latisquamea (A.Gray) G.L.Nesom & G.I.Baird - dry streambeds in Arizona, New Mexico; Baja California, Sonora • Ericameria nauseosa var. nana (Cronquist) G.L.Nesom & G.I.Baird – ridges and cliffs in Idaho, Oregon, Washington • Ericameria nauseosa var. nauseosa – plains + hills in Alberta, Saskatchewan; Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nebraska, Dakotas., Wyoming • Ericameria nauseosa var. oreophila (A.Nelson) G.L.Nesom & G.I.Baird – Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Wyoming, Baja California • Ericameria nauseosa var. psilocarpa (S.F.Blake) G.L.Nesom & G.I.Baird – sagebrush scrub in eastern Utah • Ericameria nauseosa var. salicifolia (Rydb.) G.L.Nesom & G.I.Baird – brushlands in Utah • Ericameria nauseosa var. speciosa (Nutt.) G.L.Nesom & G.I.Baird – brush + open woodlands in Alberta, British Columbia, California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, Washington, Wyoming • Ericameria nauseosa var. texensis (L.C.Anderson) G.L.Nesom & G.I.Baird – Guadalupe Mountains in Texas + New Mexico • Ericameria nauseosa var. washoensis (L.C.Anderson) G.L.Nesom & G.I.Baird – open rocky sites in grasslands of northeastern California and northwestern Nevada ==Distribution and habitat==

It grows in the arid regions of western Canada, western United States (from the western Great Plains to the Pacific) and northern Mexico. ==Ecology==

Along with associated species, like big sage and western wheat grass, rubber rabbitbrush is only lightly or occasionally used by herbivores during the summer. However, it can be heavily used during the winter when other food sources are scarce and on depleted rangelands. The species often occurs with Chrysothamnus viscidiflorus. ==Cultivation==

Rabbitbrush, Ericameria nauseosa, has gained popularity as an ornamental xeriscaping shrub in areas where water conservation is important. It thrives in a wide range of coarse, alkaline soils that are common to desert environments. Pruning the shrub back to several inches in early spring, before new growth begins, may help improve the shrub's ornamental value. The varieties Ericameria nauseosa var. nauseosa and Ericameria nauseosa var. speciosa are especially valued as they rarely exceed 24 inches and will often only reach a foot in height. Gardeners appreciate the enthusiastic late season blooms as well as the foliage. == Radioactivity ==

Specimens growing in Bayo Canyon, near Los Alamos, New Mexico, exhibit a concentration of radioactive strontium-90 300,000 times higher than a normal plant. Their roots reach into a closed nuclear waste treatment area, absorbing strontium in place of calcium due to their similar chemical properties. According to Joseph Masco, the radioactive shrubs are "indistinguishable from other shrubs without a Geiger counter." == Uses ==

The Zuni people use the blossoms bigelovii variety of the nauseosa subspecies to make a yellow dye. They use the stems to make baskets. The Navajo also made a yellow dye from some of the flower heads. Several studies have been conducted on the possible use of rubber rabbitbrush as a source of rubber including ones during World Wars I and II, and in 1987. Between 2005 and 2008, the University of Nevada researched possible material applications of rubber rabbitbrush. One possible commercial use of the species would be as a source for hypoallergenic rubber for use in products designed for people with latex allergies. ==Gallery==

File:NativeRabbitBush.JPG|Rabbitbrush native to the area near the post office in Crestone, Colorado File:RabbitBushBlooms.JPG|Blooms of the decorative rabbitbrush used at the Crestone post office. File:rubber rabbitbrush 01.jpg|Rubber rabbitbrush in Utah File:Ericameria nauseosa.jpg|At Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge, Colorado ==References==