Artemisia filifolia Torr.
by Kelly Crowley, Native Plants of Arizona 2004
Common Name: Sand Sagebrush(1,2,3). Sandhill sage, silvery wormwood (1,3). Sand sage, old-man sagebrush (2).
Family: Asteraceae (1). Compositae (6,7).
Synonymy: Oligosporus filifolius (Torr.) W.A. Weber (1,3). Oligosporus filifolius (Torr.) Poljakov (2).
Etymology: Artemisia refers to Queen Artemisia of Caria , Asia Minor (8). Filifolia refers to the plant's threadlike leaves (5,8).
Identification
Growth Form: Sub-shrub(1). Shrub (1,2,6). Round, freely-branching woody shrub up to 5 feet (1.5 m) tall (2,6,7).
Roots:
Stem: A semi-evergreen shrub with feathery, silver-blue foliage (5). Canescent or tomentulose (6).
Leaves: Grayish green, threadlike, covered with silvery hairs; occurring all along stems (7). 1.2 to 2.0 inches (3-8 cm) long (2,6). Entire and filiform or ternately divided into filiform divisions, often fascicled. Often canescent or tomentulose (6). Less than 0.5 mm wide, entire or pinnately divided into filiform divisions and often fascicled (2).
Inflorescence/Flowers: Y ellow woolly disk flower heads in long clusters (5,7). Numerous nodding heads containing 2 or 3 fertile, pistillate ray flowers and 1 to 6 perfect but sterile disc flowers are arranged into leafy, narrow panicles (2,6).
Fruit: L ightly-ribbed, obovoid achenes 0.7 to 1.0 mm long and 0.4 to 0.5 mm wide (2). Achenes glabrous (6).
Similar Species: This is the only shrubby Artemesia with filiform leaves.
Ecology
Life History: D eciduous perennial (5).
Native/Introduced: Native perennial (1,3).
Photosynthetic Pathway:
Phenology: In Arizona , August through November (2,7). August through September (5).
Distribution: Sand sagebrush occurs from Nevada and Utah east to Wyoming and western Nebraska and south to Texas , Arizona , and Chihuahua , Mexico (2,6). Generally associated with deep sand deposits. Sand sagebrush is usually the dominant overstory component within these communities. Elevational range for sand sagebrush over its whole range is given as 2,000 to 6,000 feet (610-1,829 m) (2). The elevational range in Arizona is 4,000 to 6,000 feet (1,219-1,829 m) (2,6,7). In Arizona , it has been reported in all counties except Yavapai County (6).
Uses:
The Navajo tribe used sand sagebrush as stock feed, toilet paper, and to treat snakebites (4). The plants are also used for boils, indigestion, and ritualistic purposes (9).
References
1. USDA, NRCS. 2004. The PLANTS Database, Version 3.5 ( http://plants.usda.gov ) . National Plant Data Center , Baton Rouge , LA 70874-4490 USA .
2. McWilliams, Jack 2003. Artemisia filifolia In: Fire Effects Information System, [Online]. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory (Producer). Available: http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/ [2004, December 28].
3. Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS) ( http://www.itis.usda.gov/ ).
4. Management Considerations Species: Artemisia filifolia [online] Retrieved December 28, 2004 on the World Wide Web: http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/plants/shrub/artfil/management_considerations.html
5. Sand sage Artemisia filifolia Asteraceae [online] Retrieved December 28, 2004 on the World Wide Web: http://cals.arizona.edu/yuma/urbanhorticulture/moody_gardens/moody%20images/garden_plants/Sand%20sage_Artemisia%20filifolia/sand_sage.htm
6. McDougall, W.B. (1973). Seed Plants of Northern Arizona : With Keys and Detailed Descriptions for the Identification of Families, Genera and Species . Flagstaff : The Museum of Northern Arizona .
7. Epple, Anne Orth (1995). A Field Guide to the Plants of Arizona . Mesa : LewAnn Publishing Company.
8. Gledhill, D. (1985). The Names of Plants . Cambridge : Cambridge University Press.
9. Native American Ethnobotany [online] Retrieved January 31, 2005 on the World Wide Web: http://herb.umd.umich.edu/
