Snakeweed

Tiny yellow flowers give this snakeweed a dullish yellow color in early autumn.

NPS/

Typically overshadowed and lost in a sea of color earlier in the year, late summer is the time for snakeweed to capture attention. Though capable of growing over 2 feet tall, most of the snakeweed on Parashant is considerably smaller, commonly reaching about 8-12 inches in height. As such, its much larger co-inhabitant, the sagebrush, often hides it. This shrub, with its slender lemon-lime colored branches and leaves, bursts forth in beautiful bundles of tiny yellow flowers in late August into September.

Snakeweed was used by many Native American tribes to treat ailments such as arthritis, stings, bruises, and as a sedative however, there are no known uses today. Other historical uses of the plant include tying the plant’s sticks together to make brooms, using the plant tops for yellow dye, and kindling for fires. Cattle, horses, and sheep feed on it only as a last resort when nothing else is available. This can sometimes prove dangerous due to its high levels of toxic saponins. Consuming too much snakeweed during winter months when options are limited, has resulted in the poisoning of many livestock over time.