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Plant Profile

Porter's Sagebrush (Artemisia porteri)

Porter's sagebrush is a short, silvery-leaved herb, shown here with taller reproductive stems. Photo Credit: J. Locklear

Global Rank: G2 - Imperiled
Legal Status: N/A
Family: Asteraceae
State: WY
Nature Serve ID: 141604
Lifeform: Forb/herb
Date Inducted in National Collection: 02/25/1988

Description:

Viewed from a distance, Porter's sagebrush all but vanishes into the barren badlands, its silvery foliage practically invisible against the ash-gray backdrop. As if life isn't hard enough in the cold desert of central Wyoming, Porter's sagebrush grows in the harshest of habitats - the eroding clay slopes of badland formations. Very few plants can grow in these deserts within the desert, providing a special, competition-free niche for this mat-forming sagebrush.

Where is Porter's Sagebrush (Artemisia porteri) located in the wild?

Habitat:

Barren to sparsely vegetated badlands of ashy or tufaceous mudstones and eroding clay slopes. Occurs in cushion plant communities within more densely vegetated cold desert shrubland dominated by saltbush (Atriplex spp.) and greasewood (Sarcobatus vermiculatus). Often abundant in its local habitat. Elevation 5300-7000 ft. (Fertig 1994)

Distribution:

Limited to the Wind River Basin of central Wyoming in Fremont, Johnson and Natrona counties.

States & Provinces:

Porter's Sagebrush can be found in Wyoming

Which CPC Partners conserve Porter's Sagebrush (Artemisia porteri)?

Lauritzen Gardens

Not Sponsored

Assigned 06/09/17

CPC's Plant Sponsorship Program provides long term stewardship of rare plants in our National Collection. We are so grateful for all our donors who have made the Plant Sponsorship Program so successful. We are in the process of acknowledging all our wonderful plant sponsorship donors on our website. This is a work in progress and will be updated regularly.

Conservation Actions

08/19/2020

Seed germination studies.

Nature Serve Biotics

05/02/2017

Endemic to the Wind River Basin, Fremont County, Wyoming. Populations are localized, but are often relatively large.

Jim Locklear

01/01/2010

Construction associated with oil and gas development. Off-road vehicle damage.

Jim Locklear

01/01/2010

Unknown.

Jim Locklear

01/01/2010

Not Available

Jim Locklear

01/01/2010

Not Available

Jim Locklear

01/01/2010

Additional survey work.

Jim Locklear

01/01/2010

Seed germination studies.