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Delphinium leucophaeum

pale larkspur

Delphinium glareosum

Olympic larkspur

Habit Sturdy perennial from a thick, fibrous, woody root, the 1-several stems stout, simple, 2-3 dm. tall.
Leaves

Leaves numerous, fleshy, evenly distributed below the inflorescence, but the petioles of the lower and basal leaves proportionately longer, forming a rounded clump;

leaf blades 3-8 cm. broad, divided nearly to the base into 3 primary lobes, the lateral lobes again divided into 2-3 parts, the ultimate segments linear to narrowly oblong, entire.

Flowers

Inflorescence loose and broad, the racemes compound, often half the height of the plant, the lower flowers or racemes in leaf axils;

pedicels long, stout, spreading;

sepals 5, deep purplish-blue, the lower pair 12-16 mm. long, the lateral pair oblanceolate, pointed, the spur 12-17 mm. long, exceeding the blade of the upper sepal;

petals 4, small, blue;

stamens numerous;

pistils 3.

Fruits

Follicles spreading, 11-14 mm. long..

Delphinium leucophaeum

Delphinium glareosum

Flowering time May-June May-August
Habitat Bluffs, open ground, and moist lowland meadows where undisturbed. Alpine and subalpine ridges and talus slopes, sometimes found at lower elevations.
Distribution
Occurring west of the Cascades crest in Washington, where known only from Lewis County in Washington; Lewis County, Washington to Willamette Valley, Oregon.
[WildflowerSearch map]
Occurring in the Olympics and Cascades Range in Washington; British Columbia to Oregon.
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Origin Native Native
Conservation status Endangered in Washington (WANHP) Not of concern
Sibling taxa
D. ajacis, D. basalticum, D. ×burkei, D. depauperatum, D. distichum, D. glareosum, D. glaucum, D. lineapetalum, D. menziesii, D. multiplex, D. nuttallianum, D. nuttallii, D. occidentale, D. stachydeum, D. sutherlandii, D. trolliifolium, D. viridescens, D. xantholeucum
D. ajacis, D. basalticum, D. ×burkei, D. depauperatum, D. distichum, D. glaucum, D. leucophaeum, D. lineapetalum, D. menziesii, D. multiplex, D. nuttallianum, D. nuttallii, D. occidentale, D. stachydeum, D. sutherlandii, D. trolliifolium, D. viridescens, D. xantholeucum
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