VALUE AND USE
SPECIES: Shepherdia canadensis | Russet Buffaloberry 



WOOD PRODUCTS VALUE : 
NO-ENTRY


IMPORTANCE TO LIVESTOCK AND WILDLIFE : 
Russet buffaloberry provides only fair forage for sheep and poor forage
for cattle and horses [35].  Feral horses in western Alberta used it as
a small part of their diet [47].  Mule deer, white-tailed deer, and elk
use has been rated from fair to good [35,37,59,60], with one Montana
study listing it as a key food source of white-tailed deer [14].
However, in the Black Hills, it was absent from the white-tailed deer
diet for the entire year [24].  Russet buffaloberry provided only 1 to
10 percent of the June to September diet of mule deer in Colorado [59].
Snowshoe hares utilize russet buffaloberry as browse, but it is not
preferred [39,49].  Bighorn sheep use it as a low-preference shrub, with
moderate to heavy use of new growth in early June [51].  Dormant plants
are used in proportions equal to or greater than their availability
[44].

Wildlife use berries more frequently than browse.  Black bears, grizzly
bears, and grouse make substantial use of them in the fall
[33,37,42,55,57].  Berries provide the major food from midsummer until
frost for black bears in the Yukon Territory [32].


PALATABILITY : 
Palatability of russet buffaloberry browse is considered poor; it is
usually utilized only in the absense of other browse.  It is listed as
unpalatable to both mule deer and white-tailed deer in the Black Hills
[16], and to moose in British Columbia and Wyoming [7,16].  Extensive
use of the berries indicates their high palatability.

The relish and degree of use shown by livestock and wildlife species for
russet buffaloberry in several western states is rated as follows
[7,11,14,16,59]:

                        CO      MT      ND      OR      UT      WY
  Browse
Cattle                 Poor    Poor    Poor    Poor    Poor    Fair
Sheep                  Poor    Fair    Fair    Fair    Fair    Fair
Horses                 Poor    Poor    Poor    Poor    Poor    Fair
Pronghorn              Fair    Fair    Fair    Fair    Poor    Poor
Bighorn                Poor    Poor    Poor    Poor    Poor    Poor
Elk                    Poor    Poor    Poor    Poor    Fair    Fair
Moose                  Poor    Poor    Poor    Poor    Poor    Poor
Mule deer              ----    Poor    Poor    Poor    Good    Fair
White-tailed deer      Poor    Good    Poor    Poor    Fair    Poor

  Fruit
Small mammals          Good    Good    Good    Good    Fair    Good
Small nongame birds    Fair    Fair    Fair    Fair    Fair    Good
Upland game birds      Good    Good    Good    Good    Fair    Fair
Waterfowl              ----    Good    Good    Good    Poor    Poor      
Grizzly bear           ----    Good    ----    ----    ----    Good
Black bear             Good    Good    Good    Good    Good    Good


NUTRITIONAL VALUE : 
Russet buffaloberry browse has one of the highest protein values, but
its low palatability warrants a low food value rating [7,16].  Chemical
analyses indicate a high total sugar content in the browse, which should
make it palatable.  Cyanide, which animals avoid, may be present, but
this has not been verified by chemical analysis [16].  Another problem
may be the phosphorus:calcium ratio.  Less than 1:5 is poor, due to
calcium's inhibition of phosphorus uptake.  Leaves have a 1:6 ratio,
stems have a 1:10 ratio and fruit has a 1:1 ratio.  This makes the fruit
the only palatable portion.  Carotenoids (0.97 percent of the fruit's
dry weight) provide a source of vitamins to wildlife using the berries
[37].


COVER VALUE : 
The degree to which russet buffaloberry provides environmental
protection during one or more seasons for wildlife species is as follows
[11]:

                        UT     CO     WY     MT
Elk                    Fair   ----   Fair   Poor
Mule deer              Fair   ----   Good   Fair
White-tailed deer      ----   Good   Fair   ----
Pronghorn              Poor   ----   Poor   ----
Upland game birds      Fair   ----   Good   Good
Waterfowl              Poor   ----   Poor   Poor
Small nongame birds    Good   Fair   Good   Good
Small mammals          Fair   Fair   Good   Fair


VALUE FOR REHABILITATION OF DISTURBED SITES : 
Russet buffaloberry is desirable for revegetating disturbed sites
because it is native, provides food and cover for wildlife, and is a
nitrogen-fixing plant.  Its nitrogen-fixing ability allows it to grow in
soils with low amounts of mineral nitrogen, which are common in
disturbed areas.  It also enhances the growth of associated species by
producing "an island of fertility" around its perimeter [61].

A 1979 survey of all Soil Conservation Service, State Conservationists
indicated only one Southwestern state is currently using russet
buffaloberry for amenity plantings [13].  It naturally invaded two of
six subalpine mine sites in Alberta, being rare at one site and abundant
at the other [46].  It was used as a preferred species for revegetation
of three mining sites in Idaho [43].

Several methods have been tried for propagation of russet buffaloberry.
Vegetative propagation is best accomplished using root cuttings.  Stem
cuttings have been unsuccessful [27].  Transplanting containerized
material has been successful in Ontario [61] and Alaska [9].  Seeds are
very susceptible to greenhouse pathogens and have limited germination
ability [See Regeneration Processes], making root cuttings a better
method of propagating containerized material [9].  Formation of short
suckers allows a gradual increase in the size of the planting [61].
Direct planting of properly scarified seeds may be successful but has
not been reported in the literature.


OTHER USES AND VALUES : 
Food:  Native Americans either pressed the berries into cakes, which
were smoked and eaten, or mixed them with water and beat them to make a
frothy dessert [57].

Ornamental:  Plants are occasionally grown for ornamental use [37].

Medicinal:  The Salish and Kootenai tribes boiled debarked branches and
used the solution as an eyewash.  The Sioux boiled the roots, strained
them through cloth and the tea to cure diarrhea [37].


MANAGEMENT CONSIDERATIONS : 
Wildlife managers plant russet buffaloberry for habitat improvement and
watershed management [37].

Related categories for Species: Shepherdia canadensis | Russet Buffaloberry