General: Winterfat (Krascheninnikovia lanata) generally is an upright shrub with gray-green, hairy leaves. The leaves are long and narrow, folded along the midline, and slightly rolled under on the edges. The stems are white hairy. The flowers lack petals, but are covered with long, fuzzy hairs. The fruits are also covered in long, white hairs. Pistillate flowers are densely hairy with long, paired stigmas. Staminate flowers have four stamens.

Winterfat is a halophyte that thrives in salty soils such as those on alkali flats (playa basins). It is an uncommon component of shrub communities in the Upper Sonoran (Mojave Desert Scrub and lower part of the Pinyon-Juniper Woodland) life zones, although it is planted in some ranching areas.

Around Las Vegas, look for winterfat in middle-elevation desert scrub areas such as the Scenic Loop Road in Red Rock Canyon and along roads leading to Mt. Charleston. In Basin and Range National Monument, the south quarter of Garden Valley is a monoculture of Winterfat.

Family: Amaranthaceae, formerly Goosefoot (Chenopodiaceae).