Sagebrush is used by Native Americans as a smudge herb (an herb burnt for the smell). It is picked along with juniper, chaparral, desert tea and other herbs. When its leaves are powdered they can be used for rashes such as diaper rash. Its decoction, which is the water that it has been boiled in, can be used on bitten and irritated skin. The sagebrush's smoke is offensive to many animals and insects and helps keep mosquitoes away. When wrapped around perishable food it will keep insects and rodents away. Some livestock and wildlife animals that eat this plant are: cattle, domestic sheep, horses, pronghorn, elk, mule deer, white-tailed deer, small mammals, small non-game birds, upland game birds, and waterfowl.I noticed a small valley on the Kaibab Plattue(AZ) that the sagebrush looks as if a hedge trimmer that cut the tops off the the sagebrush about 3 feet even. No, just the nibbles of the mule deer in this quite lovely valley.
Kaibab National Forest, 70’s)
on the high plains
deer nibbles the sage brush
sweet aroma fell
HAIKU GLAWS/70
