Purshia tridentata var. glandulosa – “Bitterbrush”

Also Known As: Desert Bitterbrush, Antelope Bush, Antelope Brush, Antelope Bitterbrush, Mojave Antelope Bush, Buckbrush, Quinine Brush
Other Botanical Names: Purshia glandulosa
Family: Rose (Rosaceae)
Bloom Period: Mar-May
Form: Perennial Shrub
Habitat: Desert mountains
Leaves: Ovate, divided into three to nine lobes; clustered in bunches
Translation: “Purshia” is named for Frederick Traugott Pursh (1774-1820), a horticulturist and author of the first book on the flora of North America; “tridentata” is Latin for “three-toothed,” referring to the leaf shape, which has three lobes; “glandulosa” is Latin for “provided with glands.”
Notes: Naturally hybridizes with Cliff Rose (Purshia mexicana var. stansburyana), which produces plants with characteristics of both and complicates identification efforts.
Native American Uses: Plant used as an emetic (vomit inducer) by the Ramah, Paiute and Shoshone, medicinally or ceremonially. The Kawaiisu used the plant for menstrual cramps, as a laxative, and for treating gonorrhea. The Ramah used a decoction of the root to treat fevers and encourage delivery of the placenta, and chewed the leaves for good luck in hunting. The Paiute took an infusion of twigs and leaves for lung pain associated with tuberculosis, applied a poultice of the leaves for skin problems, treated smallpox, chickenpox and measles rashes with a decoction of the plant, used a decoction of the leaves or inner bark to treat venereal disease, and took a decoction of leaves for colds, liver problems, pneumonia and as a general tonic. The Northern Paiute treated intestinal worms, stomachaches, and constipation with a decoction of sun-dried leaves. The Shoshone took a decoction of the inner bark for internal ruptures and gonorrhea, a decoction of the leaf as a blood tonic, a decoction of the leaves or roots for venereal disease, applied a poultice of the leaves for skin problems, and treated “milk leg” (the inflammation of the femoral vein, a condition most common after childbirth) by washing the area with a decoction of leaf and having the woman suck on a bundle of inner bark strips.
As a fiber plant, the bark was useful to the Navajo for diapers, to the Paiute for moccasins, and to the Ramah, who shredded it as bedding for cradle boards. The Navajo used the wood to make arrows. The Northern Paiute used it for firewood, fiber, and a violet dye. The Ramah used the ashes of the leaves and twigs in the “Evilway Blackening” ceremony.
Animal Associations: Food plant for larvae of the Behr’s Hairstreak butterfly. Major component of the diet of the Bushy-Tailed Woodrat. Forage for the Mule Deer.