Mallow ninebark, probably the commonest and most widely distributed spe- 

 cies of Opulaster in the West, is an erect, ornamental shrub, usually from 3 

 to 7 feet high, with alternate, thin, three- to flve-lobed, double-toothed leaves, 

 and numerous white flowers in dense, terminal, somewhat umbrella-shaped 

 clusters. The specific name malvaceus, meaning mallowlike, refers to the 

 similarity of the leaves of this species to those of certain species of mallow 

 (Malva). Mallow ninebark occurs from British Columbia to Oregon, Nevada, 

 Wyoming, and Montana. It is characteristic of dry rocky slopes, cliffs, and 

 canyon sides in the open and in scattered timber. Its leaves, which turn a deep 

 red brown in the fall, are often a conspicuous feature of the landscape, espe- 

 cially in the Great Basin. This shrub also grows along 1 mountain streams, in 

 canyon bottoms, on north slopes, and in rather heavy timber extending over 

 a wide altitudinal range, from the sagebrush belt into the spruce-fir belt. 



This species is abundant in many areas and produces an immense amount of 

 foliage, which is grazed to some extent by cattle, sheep, and goats, generally 

 being poor forage for cattle, fair for sheep, and fairly good for goats. On 

 some ranges it is more valuable, but reports of higher palatability generally 

 represent ranges where better forage plants have been depleted. Ordinarily 

 this shrub has a relatively low, rounded or open growth habit favoring its use 

 as a browse species. It is probably never grazed heavily enough to be seriously 

 damaged, and is of little value on winter range, because it loses its leaves 

 in the fall. 



NINEBARKS (Opulas'ter spp., syn. Physocar'pus spp.) 



The ninebarks, so-called from the supposedly nine layers of thin, exfoliating 

 bark on the stems, compose a relatively small, chiefly North American genus 

 of shrubs belonging to the rose family (Rosaceae). The name Opulaster sug- 

 gests the resemblance of these bushes to Opulus, i. e., what is now called the 

 European cranberrybush (Viburnum opulus). About 13 species have been 

 distinguished in North America, and one species is native to Manchuria. On a 

 conservative basis, some nine species grow in the West, being recognized by 

 the exfoliating bark, the alternate, three- to five-lobed, toothed leaves, re- 

 sembling the leaves of currants and gooseberries, and the dense, umbrella- 

 shaped clusters of small, white, or pinkish flowers with, five petals and numer- 

 ous (20 to 40) stamens borne at the edge of a disk at the base of the petals. 

 The fruits consist of from one to five small, dry, somewhat inflated capsules, 

 which when split open discharge the few, small, pear-shaped seeds. 



In general, the ninebarks are inferior browse plants, their palatability averag- 

 ing about poor for cattle and fair for sheep and goats. Their abundance and 

 bushy growth habit, which is conducive to easy utilization, gain considerable 

 importance for the ninebarks as browse species, however. 



Mallow ninebark, mountain ninebark (0. mono'gy tws), and Pacific ninebark 

 (O. capita' t us) are probably the most important among western ninebarks. 

 Mountain ninebark occurs in the aspen and spruce belts from the Black Hills 

 in South Dakota to Wyoming, Texas, and New Mexico and is probably the 

 only species growing in the Southwest. It is a rather low shrub, seldom over 

 40 inches high, and has densely hairy, somewhat inflated fruits with ascending 

 beaks and currantlike, rather deeply three- to five-lobed, sharply toothed leaves 

 about three-fourths of an inch to 1% inches long. This species is abundant on 

 some New Mexican ranges at middle elevations, but is only a poor to fair browse 

 plant. Pacific ninebark, ranging from California to Idaho and British Columbia, 

 is apparently the only species Avhich grows in California. It is common along 

 streams and is often abundant on steep north slopes in the coast ranges in 

 California at elevations of from 500 to 4,500 feet ; elsewhere, it is mostly scat- 

 tered. This erect or straggly shrub, from 3 to 5 feet high, has roundish, three- 

 to five-lobed, toothed leaves, hairless above and often hairy beneath. The leaves 

 are about 1 to 3 inches long (larger on the sterile shoots), borne on leafstalks 

 from one-half of an inch to 1% inches long. Each flower usually produces five 

 hairless spreading capsules, which are somewhat longer than the outer flower 

 parts. The palatability of this species is probably about average for the genus. 



The ninebarks are rather attractive hardy shrubs and several species are 

 valued as ornamentals. 



