The Shadscale Vegetation Zone of Nevada and Eastern California in Relation to Climate and Soils

In the intermountain region of the western United States, great expanses of small-leaved shrubby vegetation occupy the semi-arid and arid valleys and foothills between the isolated mountain ranges. The dominant shrubs, principally members of the Compositae and Chenopodiaceae, are relatively low in stature, ranging in height from less than one to four or five feet in height. This vegetation has been designated as constituting the main body of the sagebrush formation or climax (Clements, 1920; Weaver and Clements, 1938).