The Paiute Plant of the Month is the silver buffaloberry – Opeev’ (Click here for the pronunciation.)
Native Americans ate the berries raw or dried them for colder seasons. Dried berries were often mixed with dried meat, sunflowers, or other native seeds like amaranth to make a mixture referred to as pemican, a winter food or trail food. The leaves also contain saponins, which can be used for soapmaking.