Dalea candida
Dalea mollissima
white prairie-clover
downy dalea, silky dalea, soft prairie clover
2.5–10 dm, minutely gland-dotted or eglandular.
0.5–3.5 dm, glandular-tuberculate.
spikes, densely to somewhat loosely flowered, cylindric, not involucrate, 6–9.5(–10) mm diam.;
axis visible or not, especially in fruit, (1–)1.5–5.5(–7.5) cm;
bracts early deciduous or proximals persistent, interfloral ones held in place by crowded flowers, 2.5–5.5 mm.
racemes, spikelike, densely flowered, not involucrate, (12–)13–16(–17) mm diam.;
axis not visible, 1.5–7.5 cm;
bracts deciduous, 4.5–7 mm.
0–5.5(–7.5) cm.
0.2–2.5(–4.5) cm.
5, (5–)5.2–7.6 mm, filaments distinct to 2.5–4.5 mm, anthers 0.7–1.2 mm.
10, 4.3–5 mm, filaments distinct to 1 mm, anthers 0.4–0.5 mm.
white;
not conventionally papilionaceous;
banner (4–)4.2–5.7 mm, blade deltate-obovate, 2.3–3.4 × 2.4–3.7(–4.2) mm; epistemonous petals attached at separation of filaments, blades 2–3.1 × 1.1–2.6 mm.
whitish, banner sometimes lilac-tinged, keel tip sometimes lilac-tinged; papilionaceous;
banner 2.8–3.7 mm, blade broadly triangular to suborbiculate-cordate, (1.6–)1.8–2.2 × (1.4–)1.7–2.2 mm; epistemonous petals attached proximal to middle of stamen tube;
wings 1.8–2.1 × 1.1–1.3 mm;
keel detaching from stamen column after anthesis, connate by overlapping margins, blades 2.6–2.9 × 1.5–1.8 mm.
subsymmetric, (2.9–)3–4.2(–4.4) mm, pilosulous or tube glabrous;
tube 1.9–2.7 mm, not deeply recessed opposite banner, with 1 (or 2) glands between ribs, lobes lanceolate to triangular, ± unequal, abaxial pair longest.
± symmetric, (5.8–)6.1–8.2 mm, pilose;
tube (2.5–)2.7–3.3 mm, with (3 or)4–7 glands between ribs, lobes triangular or triangular-aristate.
(2.6–)2.8–4(–4.5) mm, glabrate or distally pilose, with ± prominent, elongated to circular glands on sides.
2.4–3 mm, pilosulous distally and dotted with small glands.
1.7–2.3 mm.
1.8–2.2 mm.
herbs, erect to diffusely spreading, glabrous throughout or proximal to inflorescence.
leaves (1.5–)2–6 cm;
leaflets 5–9, blades oblong to obovate or narrowly elliptic-oblanceolate, (6–)9–35 mm.
leaves 2–4 cm;
leaflets 9–15, blades cuneate-obovate, 3–9(–10) mm, margins undulate-crenate.
herbs, prostrate or decumbent, ± pilose or pilosulous.
= 16.
Dalea candida
Dalea mollissima
Varieties 2 (2 in the flora).
Varieties candida and oligophylla were treated as separate species by D. K. Wemple (1970) and are fairly well defined. In regions of overlap, var. oligophylla normally occupies higher, drier sites than var. candida.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Although Dalea mollissima normally blooms early in the spring, with adequate summer moisture it germinates in fall and winters over, so that individual plants can be large and may be mistaken as perennial. It resembles D. mollis, with which it overlaps in range, and may be collected with that species. Cuneate-obovate and undulate-margined leaves of D. mollissima resemble those of D. neomexicana, leading to further confusion among herbarium specimens. In California, D. mollissima is known only from the desert regions in the southeastern part of the state.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
1. Spike axis not visible; calyx tube glabrous. | var. candida |
1. Spike axis partially visible, especially in fruit; calyx tube usually pubescent, sometimes glabrous. | var. oligophylla |
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