30 BULLETIN 1345, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 
The plant grows on the drier soils of the plains from South 
Dakota to Kansas and Texas and westward to Colorado, Utah, 
New Mexico, and Arizona, extending into northern Mexico. 
Department sample 7085 (W), consisting of mature plants in full 
leaf, cut just above the ground, on sandy soil about 25 miles north 
of Las Cruces, N. Mex., contained, on an air-dry basis, 4.5 per cent 
of moisture, and, on a water-free basis, 14.6 per cent of ash, 1.6 per 
cent of ether extract, 26.9 per cent of crude fiber, 44 per cent of 
nitrogen-free extract, 12.9 per cent of protein, and 19.5 per cent of 
pentosans. 
While young and green, these plants are eaten freely by cattle 
and sheep, and even the old dried plants are eaten in seasons of 
scanty feed. The ability to endure unfavorable climatic conditions 
and produce forage of even a poor quality where nothing better will 
grow is the most important economic characteristic of the species. 
BUCKWHEAT FAMILY 
ERIOGONUM ABERTIANUM Torr. 
Eriogonum abertianum is a small herbaceous annual, which varies 
in height from an inch to 6 or 8 inches, with many slender stems 
and small leaves. It is always covered with dense clusters of small 
bright-yellow flowers, variegated with scarlet. It grows on the 
plains of western Texas and New Mexico to Arizona and adjacent 
Mexico, especially on sandy soils, forming a large part of the plant 
growth of that region. 
Department sample 7074 (W), consisting of plants in full leaf 
and flowers, collected on sandy soil about 25 miles north of Las 
Cruces, N. Mex., September 21, 1912, contained, on an air-dry basis, 
6.5 per cent of moisture, and, on a water-free basis, 12.8 per cent of 
ash, 1.9 per cent of ether extract, 19.8 per cent of crude fiber, 57 per 
cent of nitrogen-free extract, 8.5 per cent of protein, and 11.5 per 
cent of pentosans. 
Wherever it grows, 2. abertianum is eaten freely by cattle and 
sheep. It is one of the many annuals that are used by livestock, along 
with the grasses of the area of its distribution. 
ERIOGONUM ANNUUM Nutt. 
Eriogonum annuum is a slender annual, from 1 to 3 feet high, leafy 
near the ground, sometimes branched, often with a single erect stem, 
terminating in a flat-topped cluster of pale whitish or pinkish flowers 
that do not fall off but turn rusty as the seeds mature. The whole 
plant is covered with a mat of soft woolly hairs, and the basal leaves 
dry and shrivel as the seeds mature. The species is found all over 
the Great Plains country from North Dakota to Texas and westward 
to Montana and Arizona. It seeds freely and will grow on a small 
supply of water, seeming to prefer sandy soil. 
Department sample 7186 (W), collected on the plains about 25 
miles north of Las Cruces, N. Mex., October 14, 1913, contained, on 
an air-dry basis, 5.2 per cent of moisture, and, on a water-free basis, 
5.( per cent of ash, 2 per cent of ether extract, 26.7 per cent of crude 
fiber, 57.6 per cent of nitrogen-free extract, 8 per cent of protein, 
and 12.6 per cent of pentosans. 
