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| ## eastern baccharis {#eastern-baccharis .Title-Header}               |
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| *Baccharis halimifolia* L.                                            |
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| Plant Symbol = BAHA                                                   |
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Contributed by: USDA NRCS New Jersey State Office & Cape May Plant
Materials Center

![](media/image2.wmf){width="1.9166666666666667in"
height="2.8534722222222224in"}

##### Alternate Names {#alternate-names .Header-3}

groundsel tree, saltmyrtle, seamyrtle, silverling

**Warning: The leaves of this plant are poisonous to livestock.**

##### Uses {#uses .Header-3}

Eastern baccharis plants are dioecious, meaning there are separate male
and female plants. The female plants are particularly attractive in
flower and make a good landscape plant in exposed coastal conditions.
This plant is highly resistant to salt spray and flooding.

*Habitat*: Marsh wrens and other small birds frequently nest in the
openly branched, brittle stems.

*Erosion control*: This plant is currently being investigated for
application in soil bioengineering

systems to stabilize tidal shorelines because of its ability to root
from a dormant, unrooted cutting.

##### Status {#status .Header-3}

Please consult the PLANTS Web site and your State Department of Natural
Resources for this plant's current status (e.g. threatened or endangered
species, state noxious status, and wetland indicator values).

##### Description {#description .Header-3}

Eastern baccharis is a deciduous shrub, up to 10 feet tall; with simple,
thick egg-shaped leaves (up to 2.5" long). It is a U.S. native. Leaves
are mostly coarsely toothed above the middle of the leaf, and the
uppermost leaves have smooth margins; they are alternately arranged.
Baccharis has small heads of white flowers in stalked clusters that form
terminal leafy infloresences. The fertile heads are very showy and
cottonlike. Although deciduous, the naked stems remain slightly green
throughout the winter. Baccharis is often confused with high-tide bush
(*Iva frutescens*) which has opposite, regularly toothed leaves and
bare, gray stems in the winter.

#####  {#section .Header-3}

##### Adaptation and Distribution {#adaptation-and-distribution .Header-3}

Eastern baccharis grows naturally in the upper fringes of irregularly
flooded tidal fresh and brackish marshes, back dunes and inland open
woods, vacant fields, and desert habitats from Massachusetts to Florida,
Arkansas, and Texas.

For a current distribution map, please consult the Plant Profile page
for this species on the PLANTS Website.

##### Establishment {#establishment .Header-3}

These plants are most commonly installed as 1 to 2 year old
containerized material. Investigations are underway to determine the
rooting ability in the field from a dormant unrooted cutting. If rooting
success is high, the potential exists for incorporating baccharis into
soil bioengineering systems for tidal shoreline stabilization.

##### Management {#management .Header-3}

The facultative light requirement of baccharis seeds may provide one
opportunity for effective management to control the species as a weed.
The maintenance of a dense stand of pasture, plantation or native cover
may effectively shade the ground surface, discouraging seed germination.
The loss of viability of seed after 14 months or less implies that local
eradication of a population at a single point in time could rapidly curb
regeneration. On the other hand, prolific seed production from a single
plant will avoid eradication.

##### Pests and Potential Problems {#pests-and-potential-problems .Header-3}

A beetle, *Trirhabda baccharidis*, may assist in reducing seed viability
and potential rate of spread in semi-tidal areas, but it is not
anticipated that it will effect any significant reduction in the
groundsel bush infestation outside such areas.

##### Environmental Concerns {#environmental-concerns .Header-3}

Baccharis has the ability to grow in dense clusters reaching over 3 feet
in height with in 2 to 3 years. This shrub usurps resources that
otherwise might be utilized by commercial pastures and timber species in
coastal regions with an annual rainfall of over 90 cm. Baccharis may
also be a nuisance in populated areas because its pollen and other
airborne plant parts are believed to be allergenic. Irrigation channels
and coastal canals provide favorable man-made habitats for this species.
Best germination temperature under constant light is 25 degrees Celsius.
The well-known baccharis foliage feeding beetle *Trirhabda baccharidis*
(mentioned in the previous section) can

reach very high densities in the field and larval hatching in autumn can
cause complete defoliation at anthesis.

##### Cultivars, Improved, and Selected Materials (and area of origin) {#cultivars-improved-and-selected-materials-and-area-of-origin .Header-3}

This plant is commercially available from specialized coastal and
wetland plant nurseries.

##### Prepared By & Species Coordinators:  {#prepared-by-species-coordinators .Header-3}

*Christopher Miller*, PMS-Southern NE/Mid-Atlantic

USDA NRCS

Somerset, New Jersey

William Skaradek, Mgr.

Cape May Plant Materials Center

Cape May Court House, New Jersey

##### 

##### Edited: 31Jan2002 JLK; 31may06jsp {#edited-31jan2002-jlk-31may06jsp .Header-4}

For more information about this and other plants, please contact your
local NRCS field office or Conservation District, and visit the PLANTS
Web site\<[http://plants.usda.gov](http://plants.usda.gov/)\> or the
Plant Materials Program Web site
\<[http://Plant-Materials.nrcs.usda.gov](http://Plant-Materials.nrcs.usda.gov/)\>

*The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibits discrimination in
all its programs and activities on the basis of race, color, national
origin, sex, religion, age, disability, political beliefs, sexual
orientation, and marital or family status. (Not all prohibited bases
apply to all programs.) Persons with disabilities who require
alternative means for communication of program information (Braille,
large print, audiotape, etc.) should contact USDA\'s [TARGET
Center](http://www.usda.gov/oo/target.htm) at 202-720-2600 (voice and
TDD).*

*To file a complaint of discrimination write USDA, Director, Office of
Civil Rights, Room 326-W, Whitten Building, 14th and Independence
Avenue, SW, Washington, DC 20250-9410 or call 202-720-5964 (voice or
TDD). USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer.*

*Read about [Civil Rights at the Natural Resources Convervation
Service](http://www.nrcs.usda.gov/about/civilrights/).*