Sharptail Shrub Patch (11 Plants) | Spring 2027

Low shrub clumps for sharp-tailed grouse, set out in grassland. Silver buffaloberry, chokecherry and native American plum are three of the native shrubs NRCS guidance in North Dakota recommends for prairie wildlife plantings.

Buffaloberries come as separate male and female plants, and these are seedlings, so the sex of each one is unknown until it blooms. Plant them all together to give yourself the best odds of both.

Sharptails Don't Want Trees

Trees give hawks and owls a perch. Minnesota DNR says no trees within half a mile of a dancing ground (lek), and North Dakota guidance says to keep woody cover under half the area, keep plants under 15 ft. and never plant into native prairie. Native plum can reach 24 ft., so plant these as scattered low clumps, keep the plum in draws well away from any lek, and cut the chokecherry and plum back when they get tall.

Keep livestock away from chokecherry. The leaves, bark, stems and pits are toxic to livestock, especially cattle and sheep, and wilted leaves are the worst.

Is Planting This Baiting?

Growing plants is habitat work. Rules on fruit or nuts you pick, move or pile up vary by state, so check your state's hunting regs before you hunt over it.

For the full how-to (why these plants work, spacing, protection and timing), read our sharp-tailed grouse planting guide.

See our other wildlife bundles on the wildlife orchard bundles page.

Photos: sharp-tailed grouse by U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (public domain), via Wikimedia Commons.