Dalea ornata |
Dalea mollissima |
|
---|---|---|
Blue Mountain prairie-clover, ornate dalea, western prairie clover |
downy dalea, silky dalea, soft prairie clover |
|
Stems | (2–)2.5–6(–7) dm, dotted with small, raised glands. |
0.5–3.5 dm, glandular-tuberculate. |
Inflorescences | spikes, densely flowered, not involucrate, 13–16 mm diam.; axis not visible, (1–)1.5–5 cm; bracts deciduous, interfloral ones often held in place by crowded flowers, (3–)4–7.5(–8.5) 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. |
Peduncles | 1–11 cm. |
0.2–2.5(–4.5) cm. |
Stamens | 5, (7.3–)7.7–12 mm, filaments distinct to (3.6–)4.7–7.6 mm, anthers 1–1.4 mm. |
10, 4.3–5 mm, filaments distinct to 1 mm, anthers 0.4–0.5 mm. |
Corollas | usually rose-purple to lilac, rarely white; not conventionally papilionaceous; banner 7–9 mm, blade ovate to oblong-ovate, 3.3–4.5 × (2–)2.3–4 mm; epistemonous petals attached at separation of filaments, blades (3.3–)3.5–5 × 1.4–2 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. |
Calyces | subsymmetric, (3.6–)3.9–6.3(–6.7) mm, pilose throughout or distally; tube (2.4–)2.7–3.6(–3.8) mm, with 2–9 small glands between ribs, lobes lanceolate to ovate. |
± 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. |
Legumes | 3–3.5 mm, pilosulous distally and gland-dotted. |
2.4–3 mm, pilosulous distally and dotted with small glands. |
Seeds | 2–2.4 mm. |
1.8–2.2 mm. |
Perennial | herbs, erect, glabrous proximal to inflorescence. |
|
Principal | leaves 2.5–5.5(–6.5) cm; leaflets 5 or 7 (or 9), blades oblanceolate to obovate, 7–22 mm. |
leaves 2–4 cm; leaflets 9–15, blades cuneate-obovate, 3–9(–10) mm, margins undulate-crenate. |
Annual | herbs, prostrate or decumbent, ± pilose or pilosulous. |
|
2n | = 14. |
= 16. |
Dalea ornata |
Dalea mollissima |
|
Phenology | Flowering spring–early summer. | Flowering early spring(–fall, winter). |
Habitat | Rocky, sandy, or clay soils in dry areas, often among sagebrush. | Sandy or rocky desert slopes, flats, roadsides. |
Elevation | 100–2000 m. (300–6600 ft.) | 0–900 m. (0–3000 ft.) |
Distribution |
CA; ID; NV; OR; WA
|
AZ; CA; NV; TX; Mexico (Baja California)
|
Discussion | Dalea ornata is nearly endemic to the Columbia-Snake river basin. In California, the species is known only from the Shaffer Mountain region in Lassen County. (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.) |
Source | FNA vol. 11. | FNA vol. 11. |
Parent taxa | Fabaceae > subfam. Faboideae > Dalea | Fabaceae > subfam. Faboideae > Dalea |
Sibling taxa | ||
Synonyms | Petalostemon ornatus | Parosela mollissima |
Name authority | (Douglas) Eaton & Wright: Man. Bot. ed. 8, 219. (1840) — (as ornatum) | (Rydberg) Munz: Aliso 4: 93. (1958) |
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