Rubber rabbitbrush

Ericameria nauseosa (formerly Chrysothamnus nauseosus), commonly known as Chamisa, rubber rabbitbrush, and gray rabbitbrush, is a North American shrub in the sunflower family (Aster). It grows in the arid regions of western Canada, western United States (from the western Great Plains to the Pacific) and northern Mexico. Two subspecies have been described, nauseosa (the gray form with 14 varieties) and consimilis (the green form with 8 varieties). Rubber rabbitbrush was moved from the genus Chrysothamnus to the genus Ericameria in a 1993 paper. The findings of a 2003 phylogenetic investigation of Ericameria were consistent with the move of the rubber rabbitbrush from Chrysothamnus to Ericameria. The second edition of the Jepson plant manual and the USDA Germplasm Resources Information Network have adopted the name Ericameria nauseosa. Ericameria nauseosa is a 2' to 8' perennial shrub. The shrub reproduces from seeds and root sprouts. It blooms from August to October. It produces pungent-smelling, golden-yellow flowers. Flower heads are made up of 5 small, yellow, tubular disk flowers, and occur in umbrella-shaped terminal clusters. 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. Recognized infraspecific taxa from The Plant List with distribution information from Flora of North America and Tropicos 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.