Sarcobatus vermiculatus (Hook.) Torr.

A dense spiny shrub. It keeps growing from year to year. It grows 1.8 m high and spreads 2 m wide. The branches arch over. The wood is hard and yellow. The leaves are narrow and fleshy. They are grey-green and 35 mm long. Male and female flowers are separate on the same plant. The male flowers form catkin like spikes. These are 30 mm long. The calyx of the female flower develops into a leathery fruit. It has a wing towards the middle.

Alkaline or saline soils in semiarid or arid plains, alkali flats, slopes, desert-shrub communities, sagebrush, saltflats, roadsides, fencerows, dry washes at elevations of 600-2400 metres.

CAUTION: It can absorb high levels of sodium and potassium making it poisonous. The young tender twigs are cut into short pieces, boiled until tender then served with butter or cream sauce. The seeds are occasionally eaten.

Can be grown by cuttings or seedlings.