Fringed Sage (Artemisia frigida)

Fringed Sage (Artemisia frigida) is a perennial shrub also know as pasture sage or silver sage. It is ordinarily found in dry environments with full sunlight on plains, hills, and mountains at elevations of 4,500 to 10,000 feet. It can grow to be 10 to 45 centimeters in length, sometimes vertical or semi-erect but typically it extends horizontally along the surface forming a mat. Its delicate, silver-gray leaves are no longer than 2.5 centimeters, each containing up to 1,000 seeds. I do not condone this action, but crushing fringed sage can give off a pleasant aroma.
Fringed sage is a key source of food as its seeds are eaten by birds, it serves as a host for larval butterflies, and it is eaten by deer and pronghorn.