United States / Grow / russet buffaloberry

russet buffaloberry

Shepherdia canadensis · Elaeagnaceae · all Shepherdia records · syn. Sheperdia canadensis · Wikipedia

Fire-resistant. Recommended by 3 independent evidence lineages with no objection on record across 9 cited sources. This status is computed from the cited evidence by the published rule, never hand-assigned. The page keeps its cited source rows visible for readers and separates each evidence channel from the computed result on this record.

▲ Firewise Plants for Utah Landscapes ▲ Firewise Plants for the Puget Sound Basin ▲ Michigan's E2948 list ◆ the Idaho Firewise field scores · fire-tested ◆ Ohio's OSU Bulletin 921

Computed class: Fire-resistant (consensus) — derived from the cited evidence by a published rule, never hand-assigned. Each chip above is one independent primary-evidence lineage and its direction. No plant is fireproof; condition and placement govern. Zone 0 is hardscape regardless.

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Form: shrub
Mature height: ~6 ft
Water need: moderate
Rated in: Black Hills, South Dakota; Fremont County, Wyoming; Michigan / Great Lakes; Nevada / Great Basin +5

On this lot

1. Fire evidence and conditions

Fire evidence: Fire-resistant — location does not change the cited classification.
Fire-performance conditions
Fire ecology context
Placement evidence: 3 source placement records; source schemes remain separate.
Evidence regions: Black Hills, South Dakota; Fremont County, Wyoming; Michigan / Great Lakes; Nevada / Great Basin; New Mexico; Ohio / Midwest; Utah / Intermountain West; southern Idaho / Intermountain; western WA
Maintenance

Typed publication scope: 9 scopes across 9 cited fire sources

Firewise Plant Material for the Black Hills · Official scoped edition
- Black Hills (SD footprint); partial normalized coverage
  The page explicitly limits itself to the Black Hills, and NFPA Firewise's archived 2006 plant-list index files it under South Dakota. FireApproved publishes 47 exact genus or species owners from 48 printed rows. This is bounded Black Hills context, not statewide South Dakota coverage or a finding that a plant suits a particular site.
Fremont County Firewise Plant List · Official scoped edition
- Fremont County (WY footprint); partial normalized coverage · 2011-02-25
  The source identifies itself as the Fremont County Firewise Plant List. FireApproved publishes its 92 exact source owners as Fremont County regional context. No methodology, current county endorsement, statewide Wyoming scope, or site-specific suitability is inferred.
Fire Resistance of Plants Master Database · Official scoped edition
- Southern Idaho (ID footprint); partial normalized coverage · 2013-11-08
  The official database labels itself "For Southern Idaho" and describes Idaho residents at the urban-rangeland interface. FireApproved publishes 419 existing plant owners that cite its scored rows. This bounded Southern Idaho scope is regional context, not statewide coverage or a conclusion that the score transfers unchanged to every Idaho site.
Firewise Plants for the Puget Sound Basin · Official scoped edition
- Puget Sound Basin (WA footprint); partial normalized coverage · 2011-01-01
  King County's current wildfire page links this list for the Puget Sound Basin. FireApproved publishes 82 exact source owners as basin context, not statewide Washington guidance or a site-specific recommendation.
Wildfire-resistant Landscape Plants for Michigan (Extension Bulletin E2948) · Official scoped edition
- MI; partial normalized coverage · 2007-01-01
  Michigan State University Extension Bulletin E2948 is explicitly a list of wildfire-resistant landscape plants for Michigan and includes a Michigan-native field. FireApproved publishes 221 exact GBIF owners from 226 represented source rows and holds 15 complex or non-exact rows. This dated publication scope is not a current site-suitability determination.
FireWise Plant List for New Mexico · Official scoped edition
- NM; partial normalized coverage · 2003-10-08
  New Mexico Forestry Division publishes this as its FireWise Plant List for New Mexico. FireApproved accounts for all 140 printed rows and publishes 95 exact same-rank owners already represented in the directory; 29 exact taxa without an existing record, 14 unresolved spellings or higher-rank matches, one compound taxon cell, and one species row whose only apparent owner has an infraspecific printed identity remain held. Every published row retains the source's Y, N, ?, or blank elevation cells. Publication scope does not erase those elevation limits or establish suitability for every New Mexico site.
Firewise Landscaping (OSU Extension Bulletin 921) · Official scoped edition
- OH; partial normalized coverage · 2006-03-01
  Ohio State University Extension Bulletin 921 is an Ohio publication that describes Ohio fire seasons and landscape conditions and labels nativity to Ohio. FireApproved publishes 352 exact source-owning plant records from its eight rated tables. This historical publication scope does not assert current extension endorsement or that a listed plant suits every Ohio site.
A Compilation of Good Plant Choices for Nevada's High Fire Hazard Areas (SP-05-16) · Official scoped edition
- NV; partial normalized coverage · 2005-01-01
  University of Nevada Cooperative Extension compiled plants suited to Nevada climate zones and reported favorably by at least two upstream firewise lists. FireApproved publishes 126 exact source owners at Nevada publication scope. The source explicitly makes no independent flammability determination, so these rows remain corroborative.
Firewise Plants for Utah Landscapes (NR/FF/002) · Official scoped edition
- UT; partial normalized coverage · 2005-02-01
  Utah State University Extension states that this fact sheet selects examples for Utah landscapes and that they require proper placement and maintenance. FireApproved publishes 83 exact source owners at Utah publication scope. The table is not a site-specific planting clearance.

2. Why this plant is relevant here

State distribution: Documented in AK, AZ, CA, CO, ID, IL, IN, ME, MI, MN, MT, ND, NM, NV, NY, OH, OR, PA, SD, UT, VT, WA, WI, WY.
Native range: Current cited native range in AK, AZ, CA, CO, IA, ID, IL, IN, ME, MI, MN, MT, ND, NM, NV, NY, OH, OR, PA, SD, UT, WA, WI, WY.
Introduced / established: 1 sourced range or established record. This is not an invasive warning.
USDA hardiness: 2 applicable cited hardiness statements overlap but have different boundaries; compare each complete source row.

3. Legal, ecological, and broader status

Legal-list status
Seed-list status
Reported invasive here
Broader regional context
Federal context

How to read this page

The status above is computed from the cited rows below: independent recommendations can support a fire-resistant result, an avoid row can produce keep-away, and disagreement stays visible as conflict. Placement notes preserve each source’s own scheme rather than translating unlike rules into one scale. This is evidence about a plant, not permission to plant it in every part of the defensible space; Zone 0 remains noncombustible.

Native and introduced range evidence

These are exact U.S. botanical-area records from the cited range source. Native and introduced describe biogeographic relationship, not fire performance or planting approval. Doubtful and extinct rows stay visible but do not count as current presence.

Current native

24

exact source areas

Current introduced

1

exact source area

Qualified

0

doubtful or extinct source rows

24 native source areas · World Checklist of Vascular Plants, version 16 v16, as of 2026-06-04

Alaska (AK)
Arizona (AZ)
California (CA)
Colorado (CO)
Iowa (IA)
Idaho (ID)
Illinois (IL)
Indiana (IN)
Maine (ME)
Michigan (MI)
Minnesota (MN)
Montana (MT)
North Dakota (ND)
New Mexico (NM)
Nevada (NV)
New York (NY)
Ohio (OH)
Oregon (OR)
Pennsylvania (PA)
South Dakota (SD)
Utah (UT)
Washington (WA)
Wisconsin (WI)
Wyoming (WY)

1 introduced source area · World Checklist of Vascular Plants, version 16 v16, as of 2026-06-04

Vermont (VT)

The lossless worldwide derivative is retained once in the research corpus; object pages repeat only exact U.S. areas needed by the local lens. The JSON twin carries the same page assertions.

Plant hardiness evidence

These values describe the plant source. Your ZIP zone comes from the separate 2023 USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map. Whole-zone values stay whole-zone, and a single unresolved value is not treated as a tolerance range. Different source boundaries stay separate: overlapping statements are compared independently, while only ranges with no shared zone are called a conflict.

Wildfire-resistant Landscape Plants for Michigan (Extension Bulletin E2948) · record shrub:Sheperdia canadensis · New, January 2007 · as of 2026-08-26

2–6 explicit range · whole zone precision · source stated

Source taxon: Sheperdia canadensis · accepted name match.

Source location: Table 1, shrub row.
USDA PLANTS Database — Plant Characteristics · record SHCA · PLANTS Help Document 2022; characteristics cache retrieved 2026-08-23 · as of 2026-08-26

Exact minimum -63°F · below the published zone scale · half zone precision · below published scale

Source taxon: Shepherdia canadensis · source identifier match.

Source location: PlantCharacteristics record 87008, Temperature, Minimum (°F).

Where its sources say to plant it

Placement rules below use each source's own distances or named zones, tied to its rating. They are not interchangeable with the directory's current Zone 0 guidance.

Fire Resistance of Plants Master Database: plantable at 40' from home [Idaho minimum planting distance] (mid-scale rating)
Firewise Plant Material for the Black Hills: Shrubs [black-hills-plant-form-table] (with its recommendation)
FireWise Plant List for New Mexico: PDF page 4, Shrubs, p4-r29 [nm-emnrd-firewise-table-row] (with its recommendation)

The evidence

Grouped by what each source concluded. Primary evidence rated the plant itself (a lab, field program, or original curation); corroboration compiled or republished another source's rating and resolves to its root lineage.

Recommends (7)

Firewise Plants for Utah Landscapes (NR/FF/002) — Utah State University Extension · 2005 revision · original source Primary evidence Expert-curated lineage: usu-kuhns

“listed as a firewise plant for Utah landscapes”

Source says the plant can be firewise when properly used and maintained.
Firewise Plants for the Puget Sound Basin — King County Forestry Program · 2011 · original source Primary evidence Expert-curated lineage: king-county-2011

“Fire-resistant Landscape Plants”

Listed in the source's Shrubs table as Sheperdia canadensis (Soapberry, buffaloberry).
Wildfire-resistant Landscape Plants for Michigan (Extension Bulletin E2948) — Michigan State University Extension (Hansen, Fernandez) · New, January 2007 · original source Primary evidence Expert-curated

“considered wildfire-resistant and are recommended for Michigan’s climate”

Table 1 row: Sheperdia canadensis (Russet buffaloberry).

Corroboration (4 rows from 4 sources)

A Compilation of Good Plant Choices for Nevada's High Fire Hazard Areas (SP-05-16) — University of Nevada Cooperative Extension · SP-05-16 (2005) · original source Corroboration Compilation lineage: unr-tree

“listed by at least two cited sources”

Compilation marks: CSU 6.305, MT200101AG, USU NR/FF/002.
Fremont County Firewise Plant List — Fremont County Firewise · web page (server last-modified 2011-02-25) · original source Corroboration Compilation lineage: unknown

“Fremont County Firewise Plant List — Shepardia canadensis — Russet Buffaloberry”

Listed in the source's Shrubs section; the page describes its listed Firewise plants as generally low-growing, low-debris, and relatively moist.
Firewise Plant Material for the Black Hills — NFPA Firewise Communities · 2004 scan / 2007 archive · original source Corroboration Compilation lineage: firewise-national

“Shrubs: Russet buffaloberry — Shepardia canadensis”

The introduction describes all table entries as fire-resistive plants that can be used in landscaping. Printed-name correction used for exact matching: Shepardia canadensis -> Shepherdia canadensis.
FireWise Plant List for New Mexico — New Mexico Energy, Minerals and Natural Resources Department, Forestry Division · 2003 Forestry Division PDF · original source Corroboration Compilation lineage: csu-nmsu-firewise

“FireWise Plant List for New Mexico”

Listed as Shepherdia canadensis (Russet buffaloberry) in Shrubs. Printed elevation cells: 4,000 ft=N, 5,000 ft=?, 6,000 ft=?, 7,000 ft=Y, 8,000 ft=Y, 9,000+ ft=Y. Water need: M-H; sun/shade: S; mature height: 5-6’; approximate bloom: n/a.

Mid-scale / conditional (2)

Fire Resistance of Plants Master Database — Idaho Firewise (BLM + College of Western Idaho + Idaho Botanical Garden) · original source Primary evidence Field program lineage: idaho-tree

“fire-resistance score 7 of 10” · score 7 (idaho-0-10)
Firewise Landscaping (OSU Extension Bulletin 921) — Ohio State University Extension (Sydnor, Steward, Kloss / Ohio DNR Division of Forestry) · 2006 · original source Primary evidence Expert-curated lineage: ufifas-srs-tree

“M flammability”

Tolerates poor sandy soil; drought tolerant.

Last verified 2026-08-23. JSON (CC BY 4.0)

Profiles: USDA PLANTS · GBIF · iNaturalist · Wikidata · Wikipedia · ITIS

Shepherdia canadensis (Russet Buffaloberry). FireApproved. https://fireapproved.com/plants/shepherdia-canadensis/. Last verified 2026-08-23.