67 



THE BITTER SAGES. 



The bitter sages, or sage-brusbes, are most of tbem so bitter that 

 stock will not eat them as a general thing, except in times of scarcity 

 of forage. Sheep eat the sagebrush more often than do any other of 

 the domestic animals. They do not make a general diet of it, but eat 

 small quantities now and then, as if for a tonic or appetizer. Bud 

 brush or spring sage {Artemisia spinescens) is probably the most valu- 

 able of this group of sages. It is most abundant in the Eed Desert of 

 Wyoming, and extends into the arid regions to the southwest. The 

 masses of young leaves and flowers are much relished by sheep, and 

 the plant is regarded as an impor- 

 tant member of the forage produc- 

 ing species of the desert. Silvery 

 sage {A. canit) is probably the next 

 most valuable of the bitter sages. 

 When browsed closely it produces 

 a great many annual shoots, which 

 are quite succulent and are eaten 

 by sheep to a considerable extent. 



THE SALT-SAGES. 



The salt sages are of much more 

 importance as forage jdants than 

 the bitter sages. There are more 

 than a dozen species native to this 

 region, and all are of value for for- 

 age. In some sections, as in central 

 Wyoming and in the Ked Desert, 

 these salt-sages, or "salt-bushes," 

 furnish more of the forage than all 

 the other plants combined. The 

 kinds of most importance in this 

 region are Xuttall's salt sage {Atri- 

 plcx nuttalUi), spiny salt-sage {A. 

 confertifolia)^ hoary salt-sage, or 



shad scale {A. canescens) (see Hg. 27), Ifelson's salt-sage {A.pahidaris), sil- 

 very salt-sage {A. argenteAi), tumbling salt-sage [A. volutans), and 

 spreading salt sage {A. expansa). All are annuals except the first three, 

 which are perennials and are of especial importance for winter pastur- 

 age. The leaves, fruits, and young shoots are relished by all kinds of 

 stock. Of the three, ISTuttairs salt-sage is probably the most valuable. 



The salt-sages thrive on land strongly impregnated with alkali, and 

 so dry that but little other vegetation will exist upon it, and as there 

 are many thousands of acres of such land in this region these plants 

 are of jiarticular importance. In certain districts, as along the Green 

 Eiver iu Wyoming and also in the central part of the State, there 



Fig. 27. — Sliad scale {Atriplex cayiescens). 



