![]() …The foothills that yielded hundreds of acres of sunflowers which produced quantities of rich seed, the grass also that grew so luxuriantly…the seed of which was gathered with little labor, and many other plants that produced food for the natives is all eat out [sic] by stock. Letter, Jacob Hamblin to John W. Powell, 1880
![]() The landscape of plants on the Arizona Strip 150 years ago was a diverse mixture of grasses, forbs, and brush, adapted to high desert conditions. These plants provided food for animals such as antelope, deer and rabbits. The native plants also provided subsistence foods for the native peoples. The Southern Paiute developed finely woven basketry solely for collecting seeds. The abundance of desert grasses also drew cattle and sheep ranchers to the Arizona Strip.
My grandmother used to gather . . . a little green plant, a little old bush, and she’d whip the seeds into a basket. That was good food….First she’d roast it…. And then she used to grind it and it used to make real good soup or stew or sometimes she made it into gravy. Oh, it was really tasty. Kaibab Paiute elder, 1995
Photo: John K. Hillers, 1872 ![]() ![]() |
Last updated: April 16, 2020