WRONGLY SUSPECTED SPECIES. 145 



SAGEBRUSH. 



{Artemisia spp.) 



Bitter aromatic herbs or shrubs, with narrrow alternate leaves and 

 small yellowish or g^reenish flowers in terminal clusters. The species 

 are somewhat hairy throughout. About 20 species of sagebrush 

 grow in diflerent parts of Montana, and some of them are recognized 

 by stockmen as valuable forage plants for the late fall and winter 

 grazing. 



Various species are suspected in Montana of being poisonous to 

 stock, but no specific cases have been reported to the Department. 

 At Toston in May, 1900, it was noticed that the terminal branchlets 

 of A. tridentata had all been eaten off from a considerable number of 

 plants. 



SMALL-LEAVED CUDWEED. 



{Antennaria jmrvifolia Nutt.) 



The small, silkv, curly-leaved cudweed, about 6 inches high, which 

 grows abundantly in small patches on open hillside pastures, was 

 eaten voluntarily and with considerable relish by a horse. Dr. S. P. 

 Nelson^ states that he fed three pounds of A. luzuloides to a sheep 

 inside of 24 hours without causing anv ill effect. 



W^ILD CARAWAY. 



{Carum gairdneri (Hook. & Arn.) A. Gray.) 



A smooth, erect biennial, 1 to 4 feet high, with tuberous or turnip- 

 shaped root, 3-parted leaves, and white flowers in flat-topped clusters. 

 The plant is common in meadows and on hillsides throughout the 

 State. The general distribution is from Washington and California to 

 Idaho and Wyoming. 



This species of wild caraway" has been suspected of being poisonous 

 to stock, but this is undoubtedly a mistake, for, according to our own 

 observations, the roots under the erroneous name of wild parsnip are 

 very frequently eaten in the raw state by boys, while according to 

 Coulter, Rydberg, and others it is an article of food among the Indians. 

 Coulter^ states that "under the name of '3"amp' the root is a common 

 article of food among the Indians of Idaho and Wyoming." He fur- 

 ther states that "it is very palatable and nutritious, having somewhat 

 the flavor of carrot." 



^U. S. Dept. Agr. B. A. I., Bui. 22, p. 13. 1898. 



* Sixth Ann. Rept. U. S. Geol. Surv. of the Territories, p. 767. 1873. 



S. Doc. 160 10 



