Shepherdia rotundifolia

Shepherdia rotundifolia, the roundleaf buffaloberry[1] or silverleaf, is a 3-to-6-foot (1-to-2-meter) evergreen shrub in the oleaster family (Elaeagnaceae) that grows only in the Colorado Plateau (endemic) of the southwestern United States.[2]:97 The common name comes from western settlers using the cooked berries in a sauce for eating cooked buffalo meat.[2]:97

Roundleaf buffaloberry
Roundleaf buffaloberry with flowerbuds in Grand Canyon National Park
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Rosales
Family: Elaeagnaceae
Genus: Shepherdia
Species:
S. rotundifolia
Binomial name
Shepherdia rotundifolia
Parry

Leaves and stems

"Rotundifolia" is for the oval or egg-shaped leaves, which can vary to being lance shaped.[2]:97 They are 1⁄4 to 1 1⁄2 inches (6 to 38 mm) long, silvery green on top (hence the other common name), and hairy and pale on the bottom.[2]:97

Inflorescence and fruit

Flowers open from May to June and are yellowish.[2]:97 They are produced singly or in a cluster from leaf axils.[2]:97

Fruits are elliptical, with star-shaped hairs.[2]:97

Habitat and range

It grows in mixed desert shrub, pinyon juniper woodland, and ponderosa pine forest communities as high as 7,800 feet (2,400 m) elevations.[2]:97

References
  1. "Shepherdia rotundifolia". Natural Resources Conservation Service PLANTS Database. USDA. Retrieved 12 November 2015.
  2. Fagan, Damian (2012). Canyon Country Wildflowers (2 ed.). Morris Bush Publishing, LLC. in cooperation with Canyonlands Natural History Association. ISBN 978-0-7627-7013-7.
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