About Rabbit Brush
This plant is classified as a North American Shrub that is in the aster family. It grows in the arid regions of western Canada, the Great Plains, and northern Mexico. Rabbit Brush can grow up to seven feet high and wide.
The blooms of this plant are pungent smelling, golden yellow flowers. Their the grey/green leaves have a felt-like feel and are long and narrow almost in the shape of a spatula. The stems are rubbery and flexible. The bright golden flowers gave rise to the Latin name "Chryso" "thamnus" meaning golden bush. The flowers bloom in August and September.
Practical, Ceremonial, and Medicinal Uses
The Zuni people use the blossoms to make a yellow dye and they use the stems to make baskets.
In Ceremonial Medicine, the Navajo Kayenta and the Navajo Ramah use this plant as an emetic to cause vomiting. Medicinally, the Navajo pound the leaves into a lotion used to treat headaches. They also make a strong decoction of the roots that is taken for colds and fever and, to help with menstrual pain. The Tewa take portions of the plant and hang them around the necks of babies to stop them from drooling.
Did You Know
The first specimens of this plant were collected by Meriwether Lewis along the Missouri River in 1805.
In 1904, this plant was considered as a source of rubber.
Today, rubber Rabbit Brush is being looked into as a source for hypoallergenic rubber for use in products designed for people that are allergic to latex.
The plants growing in Bayo Canyon, near Los Alamos, New Mexico have high concentrations of radioactive strontium-90 because their roots in a waste treatment area, mistook strontium-90 for calcium. You need a Geiger counter to tell the difference.
This plant cannot grow in shade and can tolerate drought.
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