Appearance
A perennial herb growing from a taproot and woody caudex, it is covered with fine, more or less upright, hairs, especially on the stems. It produces a cluster of erect leafy stems 20 to 50 centimeters tall. The stems support lance-shaped leaves up to 8 centimeters long. Bunches of flowers with leaf-like bracts appear toward the top of the stem amongst the leaves. The corolla is light yellow, often slightly greenish, and about a centimeter long and wide. The style is short. The fruit consists of one or two, sometimes four, clustered glossy grey nutlets, 3.5 to 6, sometimes as much as 8 mm long. This plant was used as a contraceptive by several Native American groups, including the Navajo and Shoshone. Studies on mice showed the plant reduced their fertility.References:
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