Delphinium carolinianum |
Delphinium elatum |
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Carolina larkspur |
candle larkspur, candle larkspur (vascan: harms 2006), larkspur |
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Stems | (20-)40-90(-150) cm; base reddish or not, ± pubescent. |
40-200 cm; base green, pubescent or glabrous. |
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Leaves | blade round to pentagonal, 1-8 × 2-12 cm, pubescence variable; ultimate lobes 3-29, width 2-10 mm (basal), 1-7 mm (cauline). |
blade round to pentagonal, 3-15 × 6-22 cm, ± puberulent; ultimate lobes 3-9, width 8-30 mm. |
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Inflorescences | (3-)8-27(-94)-flowered; pedicel (0.4-)0.7-1.8(-5.7) cm, nearly glabrous to glandular; bracteoles 1-3.5(-6) mm from flowers, green or blue, linear, 2-7 mm, pubescence nearly glabrous to glandular. |
25-100(-more)-flowered; pedicel 1-3(-5) cm, glabrous to pubescent; bracteoles 2-5(-9) mm from flowers, green, linear, 5-9 mm, ± puberulent. |
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Flowers | sepals purple to blue to white, nearly glabrous, lateral sepals spreading, (7-)9-14(-17) × (3-)3.5-6(-8) mm, spurs ± upcurved, ascending 20-90° above vertical, (9-)11-17(-19) mm; lower petal blades ± covering stamens, 5-7 mm, cleft 2-4 mm; hairs centered, densest near base of cleft, white, sometimes blue or yellow. |
sepals blue, white, or purple, ± puberulent, lateral sepals spreading, 12-23 × 4-12 mm, spurs straight, ascending ca. 45° above horizontal, 15-22 mm; lower petal blades elevated, exposing stamens, 3-5 mm, clefts 0.2-1 mm; hairs sparse or dense, mostly near center of blade, yellow or white. |
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Fruits | (10-)12.5-18.5(-27) mm, 4-4.5 times longer than wide, glabrous to puberulent. |
13-20 mm, 3.5-4.5 times longer than wide, ± puberulent. |
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Seeds | seed coat cells with surfaces pustulate or smooth. |
winged; seed coats ± with small wavy ridges, cells elongate, surface roughened. |
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Delphinium carolinianum |
Delphinium elatum |
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Phenology | Flowering summer, more than 8 weeks after snowmelt. | |||||||||||||
Habitat | Old homesites | |||||||||||||
Elevation | 50-3000 m (200-9800 ft) | |||||||||||||
Distribution |
AL; AR; CO; FL; GA; IA; IL; KS; KY; LA; MN; MO; MS; NC; ND; NE; OK; SC; SD; TN; TX; WI; MB; Mexico
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BC; MB; SK; and probably elsewhere; native to Europe and w Asia [Introduced in North America] |
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Discussion | Subspecies 4 (4 in the flora). (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Delphinium elatum is cultivated as a garden plant or for cut flowers. It is not known to be naturalized extensively in North America; it may persist long after cultivation in cooler parts of the region. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
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Key |
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Source | FNA vol. 3. | FNA vol. 3. | ||||||||||||
Parent taxa | Ranunculaceae > Delphinium > sect. Diedropetala > subsect. Virescens | Ranunculaceae > Delphinium > sect. Elatopsis > subsect. Elata | ||||||||||||
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Subordinate taxa | ||||||||||||||
Name authority | Walter: Fl. Carol., 155. (1788) | Linnaeus: Sp. Pl. 1: 531. (1753) | ||||||||||||
Web links |