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Summary
Duration	Perennial
Growth Habit	Subshrub, Shrub, Forb/herb
U.S. Nativity	Native to U.S.
Federal T/E Status
National Wetland Indicator
Morphology/Physiology
Active Growth Period	Spring and Summer
After Harvest Regrowth Rate	Slow
Bloat	None
C:N Ratio	High
Coppice Potential	No
Fall Conspicuous	No
Fire Resistant	No
Flower Color	Yellow
Flower Conspicuous	No
Foliage Color	Green
Foliage Porosity Summer	Porous
Foliage Porosity Winter	Porous
Foliage Texture	Coarse
Fruit/Seed Color	Brown
Fruit/Seed Conspicuous	Yes
Growth Form	Single Crown
Growth Rate	Moderate
Height at 20 Years, Maximum (feet)
Height, Mature (feet)	1.5
Known Allelopath	No
Leaf Retention	No
Lifespan	Moderate
Low Growing Grass	No
Nitrogen Fixation
Resprout Ability	No
Shape and Orientation	Erect
Toxicity	Slight
Growth Requirements
Adapted to Coarse Textured Soils	Yes
Adapted to Fine Textured Soils	Yes
Adapted to Medium Textured Soils	Yes
Anaerobic Tolerance	None
CaCO3 Tolerance	Medium
Cold Stratification Required	No
Drought Tolerance	High
Fertility Requirement	Low
Fire Tolerance	Medium
Frost Free Days, Minimum	140
Hedge Tolerance	None
Moisture Use	Medium
pH, Minimum	6
pH, Maximum	8
Planting Density per Acre, Minimum
Planting Density per Acre, Maximum
Precipitation, Minimum	7
Precipitation, Maximum	30
Root Depth, Minimum (inches)	16
Salinity Tolerance	Low
Shade Tolerance	Intolerant
Temperature, Minimum (°F)	-38
Reproduction
Bloom Period	Early Summer
Commercial Availability	Contracting Only
Fruit/Seed Abundance	Medium
Fruit/Seed Period Begin	Summer
Fruit/Seed Period End	Fall
Fruit/Seed Persistence	Yes
Propagated by Bare Root	No
Propagated by Bulb	No
Propagated by Container	No
Propagated by Corm	No
Propagated by Cuttings	No
Propagated by Seed	Yes
Propagated by Sod	No
Propagated by Sprigs	No
Propagated by Tubers	No
Seed per Pound	225000
Seed Spread Rate	Rapid
Seedling Vigor	Medium
Small Grain	No
Vegetative Spread Rate	None
Suitability/Use
Berry/Nut/Seed Product	No
Christmas Tree Product	No
Fodder Product	No
Fuelwood Product	None
Lumber Product	No
Naval Store Product	No
Nursery Stock Product	No
Palatable Browse Animal	Low
Palatable Graze Animal	Low
Palatable Human	No
Post Product	No
Protein Potential	Low
Pulpwood Product	No
Veneer Product	No

 

Kingdom  Plantae -- Plants

Subkingdom  Tracheobionta -- Vascular plants

Superdivision  Spermatophyta -- Seed plants

Division  Magnoliophyta -- Flowering plants

Class  Magnoliopsida -- Dicotyledons

Subclass  Asteridae

Order  Asterales

Family  Asteraceae -- Aster family

Genus  Gutierrezia Lag. -- snakeweed P

Species  Gutierrezia sarothrae (Pursh) Britt. & Rusby -- broom snakeweed P

 

Alternate Names

snakeweed

 

Uses

Ethnobotanic:  Broom snakeweed was used by numerous Native American tribes for a variety of reasons.  The Blackfoot use the roots of broom snakeweed in an herbal steam as a treatment for respiratory ailments.  The Dakota use a concentrate made from the flowers as a laxative for horses.  The Lakota took a decoction of the plant to treat colds, coughs, and dizziness.  The Navajo and Ramah Navaho rubbed the ashes of broom snakeweed on their bodies to treat headaches and dizziness.  They also chewed the plant and applied it to wounds, snakebites, and areas swollen by insect bites and stings.  The Comanche used the stems of broom snakeweed to make brooms for sweeping their residences.

 

Wildlife:

Broom snakeweed is utilized by some large ungulates including mule deer and pronghorn antelope.  Broom snakeweed can comprise up to 28% of the pronghorn diet.

 

Status

Please consult the PLANTS Web site and your State Department of Natural Resources for this plant’s current status (e.g. threatened or endangered species, state noxious status, and wetland indicator values).

 

Weediness

This plant may become weedy or invasive in some regions or habitats and may displace desirable vegetation if not properly managed. Please consult with your local NRCS Field Office, Cooperative Extension Service office, or state natural resource or agriculture department regarding its status and use.  Weed information is also available from the PLANTS Web site at plants.usda.gov.

 

Description

General: Sunflower Family (Asteraceae).  Broom snakeweed is a perennial subshrub that ranges from 2 to 10 dm in height.  It is native to the U.S.  The stems are bushy and branch upwards from the woody base.  The non-woody stems range from smooth to having some short hairs.  The stems may be resinous and therefore sticky when touched.  The leaves are alternate and range from linear to linear and threadlike in shape.  The leaves are from 5 to 60 mm long and 1 to 3 mm wide.  Dense clusters of flowers form at the ends of the stems.  There are 3 to 8 ray florets per cluster and 2 to 6 disk florets per cluster.  The flattened part of the ray corolla or ligule is yellow in color and 1 to 3 mm long.  The whorl of bracts that is found at the base of the flower cluster is 3 to 6 mm tall and 2 mm across.  The bracts are narrow and green in color at the apex and along the midnerve.  The achenes have a modified calyx consisting of 8 to 10 acute scales.  The acute scales of the ray achenes are about one-half as long as those of the disk achenes.

 

Distribution: For current distribution, please consult the Plant Profile page for this species on the PLANTS Web site.

 

Adaptation

Broom snakeweed is found in open, dry plains and upland sites.  Broom snakeweed is killed by fire.  Re-establishment occurs via wind dispersed seeds.  Broom snakeweed densities usually increase following fire, if the seeds in the seed bank are left undamaged by heat.

 

Establishment

Broom snakeweed flowers are pollinated by various insects.  Regeneration occurs primarily through wind dispersed seeds.  Most germination and seedling establishment occurs during the winter and spring.  Broom snakeweed seeds are dormant at maturity and require a 4 to 6 month after-ripening period prior to germination.  The most successful germination occurs  between 59 to 86 °F, at or near soil surface.  Broom snakeweed prefers full sun, well-drained soil, and low moisture.

 

Pests and Potential Problems

Grown in its native habitat and using local seed stock, broom snakeweed should not be prone to debilitating pests.

 

Cultivars, Improved, and Selected Materials (and area of origin)

These materials are readily available from commercial plant sources.  Contact your local Natural Resources Conservation Service (formerly Soil Conservation Service) office for more information.  Look in the phone book under ”United States Government.”  The Natural Resources Conservation Service will be listed under the subheading “Department of Agriculture.”

 

Control

Please contact your local agricultural extension specialist or county weed specialist to learn what works best in your area and how to use it safely.  Always read label and safety instructions for each control method. Trade names and control measures appear in this document only to provide specific information.  USDA, NRCS does not guarantee or warranty the products and control methods named, and other products may be equally effective.

 

References

Austin, D.D. & P.J. Urness 1983.  Overwinter forage selection by mule deer on seeded big sagebrush-grass range.  Journal of Wildlife Management 47(4): 1203-1207.

 

Carlson, G.G. & V.H. Jones 1940.  Some notes on uses of plants by the Comanche Indians.  Papers of the Michigan Academy of Science, Arts, and Letters 25:517-542.

 

City of Boulder, Colorado 2001.  Open spaces and mountain parks.

https://www.ci.boulder.co.us/openspace/nature/gardens/grow-tip.htm

 

Elmore, F.H. 1944.  Ethnobotany of the Navajo. University of New Mexico Press, Albuquerque, New Mexico. 136 pp.

 

Gilmore, M.R. 1913.  Some Native Nebraska plants with their uses by the Dakota.  Collections of the Nebraska State Historical Society 17:358-370.

 

Hocking, G.M. 1956.  Some plant materials used medicinally and otherwise by the Navaho Indians in the Chaco Canyon, New Mexico.  El Palacio 56:146-165.

 

Johnston, A. 1987.  Plants and the Blackfoot.  Lethbridge Historical Society, Lethbridge, Alberta. 68pp.

 

Martin, S.C. 1975.  Ecology and management of southwestern semidesert grass-shrub ranges: the status of our knowledge.  RM-156.  USDA Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Forest and Range Experiment Station, Ft. Collins, Colorado. 39 pp.

 

Moerman, D.E. 1998.  Native American ethnobotany. Timber press, Portland, Oregon. 927 pp.

 

Moerman, D.E. 1999.  Native American ethnobotany database: Foods, drugs, dyes and fibers of native North American peoples.  The University of Michigan-Dearborn. https://www.umd.umich.edu/cgi-bin/herb.

 

Smith, A.D. & D.M. Beale 1980.  Pronghorn antelope in Utah: some research and observations. Publication No. 80-13.  Utah Division of Wildlife Resources, Salt Lake City, Utah. 88 pp.

 

United States Department of Agriculture, Forest Service 2001.  Fire effects information system.  Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory, Boise, Idaho. 

https://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/plants/shrub/gutsar/index.html

 

Vestal, P.A. 1952. The ethnobotany of the Ramah Navaho. Papers of the Peabody Museum of American Archaeology and Ethnology 40:1-95.

 

Prepared By:

Matthew D. Hurteau

Formerly USDA, NRCS, National Plant Data Center, c/o Environmental Horticulture Department, University of California, Davis, California

 

Species Coordinator:

M. Kat Anderson

USDA, NRCS, National Plant Data Center, c/o Plant Science Department, University of California, Davis, California

 

Edited: 30May2002 jsp ; 19may03 ahv; 07jun06 jsp

 

For more information about this and other plants, please contact your local NRCS field office or Conservation District, and visit the PLANTS Web site<https://plants.usda.gov> or the Plant Materials Program Web site <https://Plant-Materials.nrcs.usda.gov>

 

 

 

Attribution:  U.S. Department of Agriculture