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Pursh's milkvetch, woollypod milkvetch

Mulford's milkvetch

Habit Plants perennial, acaulescent to shortly caulescent, densely villous to villous-tomentose, hairs basifixed. Plants perennial, caulescent, strigillose, hairs basifixed.
Stems

prostrate, loosely to densely tufted, 0–20 cm.

several–numerous, spreading to ascending, 10–30 cm.

Leaves

1–12(17) cm;

leaflets (3)5–17(21), elliptic to oblanceolate, 2–14(20) × 1–7 mm;

tips obtuse to acute;

surfaces densely villous;

stipules 2.5–15 mm; free.

(2.5)4.5–10.5 cm;

leaflets (7)15–25, linear-oblong, linear-oblanceolate, or filiform;

terminal leaflet jointed to or confluent with rachis, 1–11 × 0.5–1.5 mm;

tips obtuse or subacute;

surfaces abaxially strigillose, adaxially glabrous;

stipules 1.5–6 mm; at least lowermost connate-sheathing.

Inflorescences

racemes or subumbels, 1–12-flowered;

peduncles 1–14 cm;

bracts 4–9 mm;

pedicels 2–4.3 mm;

bracteoles 0–2.

racemes, loosely or remotely (5)8–20-flowered;

peduncles (0.5)1–7 cm;

bracts 0.7–2 mm;

pedicels 0.7–2 mm;

bracteoles 0–2.

Flowers

ascending at anthesis;

calyces 5.5–16(19) mm, often purple, villous-pilose with white or mixed white and black hairs;

tubes 8.5–12.5 mm;

teeth subulate, 2.2–6 mm;

corollas 19–27 mm; whitish to ochroleucous or pink-purple;

ovules 14–40(46).

declined at anthesis;

calyces 2.5–5 mm, usually white strigillose;

tubes 1.5–3 mm;

teeth subulate, 0.8–2 mm;

corollas 6–8.2 mm, white or whitish;

banners sometimes lilac-veined or -tinged;

ovules 10–16.

Fruits

unilocular, ascending, obliquely ovoid, usually curved, obcompressed, scarcely to deeply sulcate; (7)13–27(30) × 3.5–11 mm, densely white to tawny tomentose or densely villous;

hairs nearly always concealing valve surfaces;

valves coriaceous, sessile or on gynophores 0–1.6 mm.

bilocular, pendulous, lunately half-ellipsoid, gently incurved, triquetrously compressed, 9–16 × 3–4.5 mm, finely strigillose;

valves papery;

stipes 3–5 mm.

Astragalus purshii

Astragalus mulfordiae

Distribution
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
[WildflowerSearch map]
Discussion

Western North America. ~8 varieties; 4 varieties treated in Flora.

Throughout western North America, particularly in the Intermountain Region, this is a low, tufted milkvetch with white or gray villous hairs and pods resembling balls of cotton. Barneby (1964) stated, “Attempts to devise a practical key to the varieties of A. purshii are never wholly successful.” Variety ophiogenes, the Snake River milkvetch, a native of Idaho, has been reported from Malheur County, but this is apparently based on misidentifications of A. purshii var. lagopinus. Variety ophiogenes has 3–11-flowered racemes and 9–17 leaflets.

Sagebrush, sandy bluffs. Flowering May–Jun. 600–1300 m. Owy. ID. Native.

Connate lower stipules, distant, narrow green leaflets, white or lilac-tinged flowers, and nodding, stipitate, trigonous, and bilocular fruits characterize this species.

Source Flora of Oregon, volume 2, page 671
Richard Halse
Flora of Oregon, volume 2, page 669
Richard Halse
Sibling taxa
A. accidens, A. agrestis, A. alpinus, A. alvordensis, A. applegatei, A. arthuri, A. atratus, A. australis, A. beckwithii, A. californicus, A. calycosus, A. canadensis, A. caricinus, A. collinus, A. conjunctus, A. curvicarpus, A. cusickii, A. diaphanus, A. drummondii, A. eremiticus, A. filipes, A. gambellianus, A. geyeri, A. hoodianus, A. howellii, A. inflexus, A. iodanthus, A. kentrophyta, A. lemmonii, A. lentiginosus, A. malacus, A. misellus, A. mulfordiae, A. multiflorus, A. newberryi, A. nudisiliquus, A. obscurus, A. peckii, A. platytropis, A. reventus, A. robbinsii, A. salmonis, A. sclerocarpus, A. sheldonii, A. solitarius, A. spaldingii, A. sterilis, A. succumbens, A. tegetarioides, A. tetrapterus, A. toanus, A. tweedyi, A. tyghensis, A. umbraticus, A. vallaris, A. whitneyi
A. accidens, A. agrestis, A. alpinus, A. alvordensis, A. applegatei, A. arthuri, A. atratus, A. australis, A. beckwithii, A. californicus, A. calycosus, A. canadensis, A. caricinus, A. collinus, A. conjunctus, A. curvicarpus, A. cusickii, A. diaphanus, A. drummondii, A. eremiticus, A. filipes, A. gambellianus, A. geyeri, A. hoodianus, A. howellii, A. inflexus, A. iodanthus, A. kentrophyta, A. lemmonii, A. lentiginosus, A. malacus, A. misellus, A. multiflorus, A. newberryi, A. nudisiliquus, A. obscurus, A. peckii, A. platytropis, A. purshii, A. reventus, A. robbinsii, A. salmonis, A. sclerocarpus, A. sheldonii, A. solitarius, A. spaldingii, A. sterilis, A. succumbens, A. tegetarioides, A. tetrapterus, A. toanus, A. tweedyi, A. tyghensis, A. umbraticus, A. vallaris, A. whitneyi
Subordinate taxa
A. purshii var. glareosus, A. purshii var. lagopinus, A. purshii var. purshii, A. purshii var. tinctus
Synonyms Astragalus purshii var. ophiogenes
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