General: Rabbitbrush (Chrysothamnus spp.) is an upright, usually thigh-high shrub with green stems and small leaves that produce dense, yellow flowerheads at the top of the shrub during fall. There are seven species of rabbitbrush in Nevada.

Rabbitbrush is a common component of wash communities and other less-dry areas in the Upper Sonoran (Mojave Desert Scrub and Pinyon-Juniper Woodland) life zone.

Family: Sunflower (Asteraceae).

Other names: Each species has a common name.

Plant Form: Upright shrub with many, green stems

Height: Usually knee- to waist-high, occasionally head-high.

Bark: New bark is green; older bark is light gray.

Stems: Erect.

Leaves: Narrow (to 3 inches long and 1/3 inch wide), green.

Flowers: Blooms in the fall. Inflorescence: many dense heads of tiny yellow flowers, sometimes covering the entire top of the shrub. Ripens to brown, fluffy flowerheads atop the plant.

Seeds: Small, hairy achene (like a tiny sunflower seed).

Habitat: Sandy and gravelly soils in and along washes.

Elevation: 3,000 to 10,000+ feet

Distribution: Western North America from British Columbia to Baja California.

Comments: Two of the more common rabbitbrush species that occur in southern Nevada are Green Rabbitbrush (Chrysothamnus viscidiflorus) and Rubber Rabbitbrush (Chrysothamnus nauseosus).