Flora of North America species comparison

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Delphinium patens

Barbey larkspur, Barbey's larkspur, subalpine larkspur, tall larkspur

spreading larkspur, spreading or zigzag larkspur, zigzag larkspur

Stems

50-150 cm;

base green, glabrous.

(10-)20-50(-90) cm;

base reddish, glabrous to puberulent.

Leaves

blade round to reniform, 4-8 × 7-15 cm, glabrous; ultimate lobes 5-9, width 8-50 mm.

blade round to pentagonal, 1-5.5 × 2-7.5 cm, nearly glabrous; ultimate lobes 3-9, less often wedge-shaped, 5 or more extending more than 3/5 distance to petiole, width 5-30(-50) mm (basal), 1-15 mm (cauline), widest at middle or in proximal 1/2.

Inflorescences

10-50-flowered;

pedicel 0.5-6 cm, glandular-puberulent;

bracteoles 1-4(-8) mm from flowers, blue to green, awl-shaped, 5-14 mm, puberulent.

4-25(-36)-flowered;

pedicel spreading from rachis at usually less than 70°, 1-4(-8) cm, glabrous to glandular;

bracteoles 3-12(-23) mm from flowers, blue to green, linear, 3-8(-16) mm, glabrous to glandular.

Flowers

sepals dark bluish purple, sparsely puberulent, lateral sepals forward pointing, 13-23 × 5-8 mm, spurs ascending ca. 45°, downcurved apically, 10-18 mm;

lower petal blades ± covering stamens, 4-7 mm, clefts 2-3 mm;

hairs centered, mostly near base of cleft, sparse elsewhere, white or yellow.

sepals dark blue, usually retaining color upon drying, glabrous, lateral sepals reflexed, (6-)10-15(-20) × 4-8 mm, spurs straight, ascending ca. 30° above horizontal, 8-18 mm;

lower petal blades elevated, exposing stamens, 3-6(-8) mm, clefts 1-3 mm;

hairs centered on base of cleft or on inner lobes, scattered, white, rarely yellow.

Fruits

17-22 mm, 2.5-3 times longer than wide, puberulent.

12-23 mm, 3.3-3.6 times longer than wide, glabrous or puberulent.

Seeds

wing-margined;

seed coat cells narrow but short, surfaces pustulate.

unwinged;

seed coats ± pitted, cell surfaces roughened.

= 16.

Delphinium barbeyi

Delphinium patens

Phenology

Flowering summer.

Habitat

Subalpine and alpine sites in wet soils

Elevation

2500-4100 m (8200-13500 ft)

Distribution

AZ; CO; NM; UT; WY

[WildflowerSearch map]

[BONAP county map]

[WildflowerSearch map]

[BONAP county map]

Discussion

Delphinium barbeyi hybridizes extensively with D. glaucum in western Colorado and eastern Utah, where plants appearing to be hybrid [D. ×occidentale (S. Watson) S. Watson] are often far more common than plants of either putative parent. Several other names have been used for these plants, including D. elatum var. occidentale S. Watson, D. abietorum Tidestrom, and D. scopulorum subsp. occidentale (S. Watson) Abrams. Delphinium barbeyi is also known to hybridize with D. ramosum and D. sapellonis.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Subspecies 3 (3 in the flora).

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Key

1. Lobes of proximal cauline leaves usually more than 15 mm wide; basal and proximal cauline leaves rarely cleft more than 4/5 radius of blade.	subsp. hepaticoideum
1. Lobes of proximal cauline leaves usually less than 15 mm wide; basal and proximal cauline leaves usually cleft more than 4/5 radius of blade.	→ 2
2. Pedicels puberulent, usually glandular; most leaf blades with more than 7 ultimate lobes.	subsp. montanum
2. Pedicels usually glabrous; most leaf blades with fewer than 7 ultimate lobes.	subsp. patens

Source

FNA vol. 3.

Parent taxa

Ranunculaceae > Delphinium > sect. Diedropetala > subsect. Exaltata

Ranunculaceae > Delphinium > sect. Diedropetala > subsect. Grumosa

Sibling taxa

D. alabamicum, D. alpestre, D. andersonii, D. andesicola, D. antoninum, D. bakeri, D. basalticum, D. bicolor, D. brachycentrum, D. californicum, D. cardinale, D. carolinianum, D. decorum, D. depauperatum, D. distichum, D. elatum, D. exaltatum, D. geraniifolium, D. geyeri, D. glareosum, D. glaucescens, D. glaucum, D. gracilentum, D. gypsophilum, D. hansenii, D. hesperium, D. hutchinsoniae, D. inopinum, D. lineapetalum, D. luteum, D. madrense, D. menziesii, D. multiplex, D. newtonianum, D. novomexicanum, D. nudicaule, D. nuttallianum, D. nuttallii, D. parishii, D. parryi, D. patens, D. polycladon, D. purpusii, D. ramosum, D. recurvatum, D. robustum, D. sapellonis, D. scaposum, D. scopulorum, D. stachydeum, D. sutherlandii, D. treleasei, D. tricorne, D. trolliifolium, D. uliginosum, D. umbraculorum, D. variegatum, D. viridescens, D. wootonii, D. xantholeucum

D. alabamicum, D. alpestre, D. andersonii, D. andesicola, D. antoninum, D. bakeri, D. barbeyi, D. basalticum, D. bicolor, D. brachycentrum, D. californicum, D. cardinale, D. carolinianum, D. decorum, D. depauperatum, D. distichum, D. elatum, D. exaltatum, D. geraniifolium, D. geyeri, D. glareosum, D. glaucescens, D. glaucum, D. gracilentum, D. gypsophilum, D. hansenii, D. hesperium, D. hutchinsoniae, D. inopinum, D. lineapetalum, D. luteum, D. madrense, D. menziesii, D. multiplex, D. newtonianum, D. novomexicanum, D. nudicaule, D. nuttallianum, D. nuttallii, D. parishii, D. parryi, D. polycladon, D. purpusii, D. ramosum, D. recurvatum, D. robustum, D. sapellonis, D. scaposum, D. scopulorum, D. stachydeum, D. sutherlandii, D. treleasei, D. tricorne, D. trolliifolium, D. uliginosum, D. umbraculorum, D. variegatum, D. viridescens, D. wootonii, D. xantholeucum

Subordinate taxa

D. patens subsp. hepaticoideum, D. patens subsp. montanum, D. patens subsp. patens

Synonyms

D. exaltatum var. (e) barbeyi, D. occidentale var. barbeyi

Name authority

(Huth) Huth: Bull. Herb. Boissier 1: 335. (1893)

Bentham: Pl. Hartw., 296. (1849)

Web links

Unless otherwise noted, all data comes from the online version of the Flora of North America, who have made most of their content available via a Creative Commons license (CC BY 4.0).

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