Artemisia carruthii, common name Carruth's sagewort or Carruth wormwood, is a North American species of shrubs in the daisy family native to much of south-central and southwestern United States (Nevada, Arizona, New Mexico, Utah, Colorado, Kansas, Oklahoma, northern + western Texas). There are reports of a few naturalized populations in Missouri, the Great Lakes Region, and Rhode Island.[1] [2] [3] It is also native to the States of Chihuahua and Sonora in northern Mexico.[4]
Artemisia carruthii is an erect perennial herb up to 70 cm (28 inches) tall. It is faintly aromatic and covered with hairs. Flowers and yellow and nodding (hanging).[4] [5] It grows in grasslands as well as open and wooded areas.
The Zuni people put the seeds on coals and use then as a sweat bath for body pains from a severe cold.[6] The ground seeds are also mixed with water, made into balls, steamed and used for food.[7] These seeds are considered by the Zuni to be one of the most important food plants.[8]
The species is named for American botanist James Harrison Carruth, 1807–1896.
