Observations by nhinguyen

A. Botanical information:

Willow Baccharis is a species of North American plants in the sunflower family. Baccharis salicina is a scientific name of this plant. It has other common names in English which are willow baccharis and Great Plains false willow. This plant is a smooth shrub and a warm-season native. It usually has a life span of less than 15 years. It has a height of 3 to 9 feet tall. The stem grows erectly and has many branches. It has short petiole leaf and the leaves are long and narrow. It has a leaf arrangement of alternate and simple leaves. The leaves are mostly sessile and thick. The leaf shape is oblong to oval. Some of them sometimes have a leaf margin of serrate. Leaves are slender at the base and quite pointed at the tip. They are pale grayish green and kind of stiff. Its fruit type is achene. Achene is a dry and almost indehiscent fruit. It is a ribbed achene with surrounding white hairs that grows in August. The plant has flower heads of different types made from male and female plants. The bud is a green bell-shaped and hairy. The flowers appear in clusters on short stalks and form a dull white string of feathers when mature. The flower is white and it often blooms in late summer and fall.
B. Ecological information:

• Its habitat: Willow Baccharis is found mainly in moist soils in open areas such as open sandy plains. It is in disturbed areas or along roadsides. It grows most commonly in mildly saline areas. It also grows in woodland habitat. It is found in wet areas in dry desert such as streambeds, stream banks, alkaline marshes, edges of ponds and lakeshores.

• Its distribution: Willow Baccharis is a plant native to the Southwestern United States and Northern Mexico. It is also known as a native to California. It is commonly found in the deserts in the States of California, Kansas, Texas, Colorado, Arizona.
  C. Ethnobotanical information:

• Local ecology and wildlife: In general, Willow Baccharis offers very little value to grazing livestock and wildlife. It is a good cover for small mammals. It is the nests for redwing blackbirds. It has a great importance to wildlife because it protects and provides shade for them. It also provides food for animals to consume. Cattle often eats the young leaves and twigs of this plant.

• Medicine: It is used to relieve diarrhea spasm. It reduces bowel spasm by inhibiting smooth muscle depolarization. It is helpful in limiting intestinal excess. It can also reduce stomach acidity. It significantly reduces pain in the wounded area because it is also a mild antibacterial.
  Works cited:
  https://www.wildflower.org/plants/result.php?id_plant=BASA
  https://rangeplants.tamu.edu/plant/willow-baccharis/
  http://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/eflora/eflora_display.php?tid=1610
  https://www.lcrmscp.gov/conservation/plants.html