SafePlants

Whiteflower Rabbitbrush and its Relatives

This page provides information on Whiteflower Rabbitbrush and related species, focusing on their characteristics and interactions with the environment.

Scientific Name and Common Names

• Scientific Name: Chrysothamnus albidus (also referred to as Ericameria albida)
• Common Names: Whiteflower Rabbitbrush, Rabbitbrush, Rubber Rabbitbrush, Golden Rabbitbrush, Chamisa, Camiso Blanco

Taxonomy and Nomenclature

• Family: Asteraceae (Daisy Family)
• Genus: Chrysothamnus, Ericameria, Lorandersonia
• Synonyms/Alternative Names: The text mentions both Chrysothamnus albidus and Ericameria albida, indicating a taxonomic debate or change over time. Chrysothamnus nauseosus is also mentioned as being referred to as Ericameria nauseosus.
• Other Species Mentioned: Chrysothamnus depressus, Ericameria arborescens

Considerations for Pets

• The text mentions that the herbage of the stems and involucral bracts is covered in loose, gray to white tomentose hairs.
• The plant reproduces from seed.

Considerations for Children

• The text mentions that the herbage of the stems and involucral bracts is covered in loose, gray to white tomentose hairs.
• The plant reproduces from seed.

Distribution and Habitat

• The plant is described as a widespread species in the western North American countryside, including Arizona and southern desert areas of Idaho.
• It is found in dry environments.

Morphological Characteristics and Growth Habits

• Rabbitbrush are shrubs.
• Stems are described as mostly erect, stiff, brittle, and striate. They can be greenish or white and glabrous. Some species have wiry, white stems.
• The herbage of the stems and involucral bracts is covered in loose, gray to white tomentose hairs, giving the plant a gray appearance. Leaves are covered in short, white, felt-like hairs.
• New blue-green leaves show above light brown masses of last year’s dried flowers.
• Flowers are small and golden yellow, forming clusters that adorn the shrub canopy from mid-summer to early fall (July to September). Some species can have white flowers. They lack ray flowers.
• Fruits are hairy, linear achenes with a pappus of white hairs. The white seeds can resemble snow from a distance.
• The stems are fragrant.

Ecological Role and Interactions

• The text notes that rabbitbrush flowers are attractive to butterflies. It specifically mentions the presence of twenty butterflies on rabbitbrush at once and the interaction with Northern White Skippers.
• Bees gather late-season nectar from rabbitbrush flowers.
• White-tailed deer in Montana feed on green rabbitbrush.

Quirky Facts

• Rabbitbrush flowers first at high elevations and last on lower slopes, unlike most native species.
• When in flower, rabbit brush will commonly have twenty butterflies on it at once.

Traditional Uses

• The Navajo used rabbitbrush leaf tea to bring down fever, treat smallpox, and relieve. The flowers and roots were used to make a tea to relieve tuberculosis.
• A tea made from the plant is used as a febrifuge.

Further Information

• Discover Life offers a page about the biology, natural history, ecology, identification, and distribution of Chrysothamnus albidus.