slgwv's photos with the keyword: sagebrush

Ruins of a cabin in the Seven Troughs Range, Pershing County, Nevada. There are various abandoned mines and mining equipment around, mostly dating to the early 20th century, and this is undoubtedly related. This ruin has gotten more and more decrepit over the 20-odd years I've been going out to this area. The scruffy shrub with small gray-green leaves and the orangish spikes is sagebrush ( Artemisia spp., probably A. tridentada ), and the one with the tiny yellow blossoms just peeking in at the right is rabbitbrush (Chrysothamnus spp., probably C. viscidiflorus ).. There was a burst of new exploration activity in this area in 2012, but so far nothing's come of it.

The ranges of sagebrush and juniper overlap commonly, but having the Joshua trees (the tall branching yucca) in there too is unusual! They're right at the edge of their range. I think that wintertime low temperatures are their limiting factor. This is just off Nevada state route 375, the so-called "Extraterrestrial Highway." This is where the Stealth was tested back in the eighties, and there were Unexplained Sightings... ;)

The ranges of sagebrush and juniper overlap commonly, but having the Joshua trees (the tall branching yucca) in there too is unusual! They're right at the edge of their range. I think that wintertime low temperatures are their limiting factor.

I have never seen a gopher climb up into the brush like this before. I guess he thinks he's a squirrel! I'm calling him a "gopher" because he didn't appear to have a bushy tail, as I saw when he finally ran off. Toiyabe Range, central Nevada, USA.

Ione Valley, Nevada, looking northwest. The gray-green shrub is in fact sagebrush, and "sagebrush steppe" is a geographer's term for the large area of the mountain West where it's a dominant element of the flora. Sagebrush is an unprepossessing plant, but it's nonetheless very successful! It belongs to the same genus ( Artemisia ) as the Old World wormwood. The map position is approximate.

With those bright blue eyes...