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. USDA, NRCS (n.d.). "Shepherdia rotundifolia". The PLANTS Database (plants.usda.gov). Greensboro, North Carolina: National Plant Data Team. 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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