FNA: Delphinium exaltatum vs. Delphinium newtonianum

	Delphinium exaltatum	Delphinium newtonianum
	tall larkspur	newton's larkspur, Ozark larkspur
Stems	70-200 cm; base reddish, nearly glabrous.	40-90 cm; base often reddish, puberulent.
Leaves	blade pentagonal, 2-7 × 3-9 cm, puberulent; ultimate lobes 3-7, width 5-25 mm; midcauline leaf lobes less than 3 times longer than wide.	blade round to pentagonal, 4-7 × 5-15 cm, nearly glabrous; ultimate lobes 3-7, width 8-20 mm (basal), 5-15 mm (cauline), widest at middle or in proximal 1/2.
Inflorescences	8-30-flowered; pedicel 0.5-2 cm, puberulent; bracteoles 2-4 mm from flowers, green, linear, 2-4 mm, puberulent.	8-20(-40)-flowered, as wide as long or nearly so; pedicel 1-4(-6) cm, pubescent; bracteoles 6-15 mm from flowers, green, linear, 1.5-5 mm, puberulent.
Flowers	sepals whitish to pale lavender or purple, puberulent, lateral sepals forward pointing, 9-11 × 4-6 mm, spurs straight, as much as 45° above or below horizontal, 9-12 mm; lower petal blades ± covering stamens, 3-5 mm, clefts 1-2 mm; hairs centered, mostly near base of cleft, white.	sepals dark to light blue, rarely white, glabrous, lateral sepals spreading, 12-14 × 6-7 mm, spurs straight to decurved, within 30° of horizontal, 10-15 mm; lower petal blades slightly elevated, ± exposing stamens, 4-5 mm, clefts 2-3 mm; hairs mostly centered near base of cleft, yellow.
Fruits	7-12 mm, 2-2.5 times longer than wide, ± puberulent.	8-12 mm, 3-3.5 times longer than wide, nearly glabrous.
Seeds	± wing-margined; seed coat cells elongate, surfaces smooth.	unwinged; surface of each seed coat cell with swollen, blunt, hairlike structures, barely visible at 20x, otherwise smooth.

	Delphinium exaltatum	Delphinium newtonianum
Phenology	Flowering summer.	Flowering early summer.
Habitat	Rocky slopes in open deciduous woods and barrens, mainly on calcareous substrates, also shale and mafic and ultramafic rocks	Slopes in deciduous forest
Elevation	150-2000 m (500-6600 ft)	500-700 m (1600-2300 ft)
Distribution	AL; KY; MD; MO; NC; OH; PA; TN; VA; WV [WildflowerSearch map] [BONAP county map]	AR [BONAP county map]
Discussion		No cases of hybridization are known. Delphinium newtonianum often occurs in mixed populations with D. tricorne. It normally does not begin flowering until 4-6 weeks after D. tricorne has finished. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Source	FNA vol. 3.	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. barbeyi, D. basalticum, D. bicolor, D. brachycentrum, D. californicum, D. cardinale, D. carolinianum, D. decorum, D. depauperatum, D. distichum, D. elatum, 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. 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
Name authority	Aiton: Hort. Kew. 2: 244. (1789)	D. M. Moore: Rhodora 41: 196. (1939)
Web links	Local Web sites: MD Biodiversity, MO Plants WildflowerSearch iNaturalist (observations) USDA Plants Database LBJ Wildflower Center SEINet Plants of the World Online Encyclopedia of Life Wikipedia Google Image Search	WildflowerSearch iNaturalist (observations) USDA Plants Database LBJ Wildflower Center SEINet Plants of the World Online Encyclopedia of Life Wikipedia Google Image Search

Delphinium newtonianum

tall larkspur

newton's larkspur, Ozark larkspur

Stems

70-200 cm;

base reddish, nearly glabrous.

40-90 cm;

base often reddish, puberulent.

Leaves

blade pentagonal, 2-7 × 3-9 cm, puberulent; ultimate lobes 3-7, width 5-25 mm;

midcauline leaf lobes less than 3 times longer than wide.

blade round to pentagonal, 4-7 × 5-15 cm, nearly glabrous; ultimate lobes 3-7, width 8-20 mm (basal), 5-15 mm (cauline), widest at middle or in proximal 1/2.

Inflorescences

8-30-flowered;

pedicel 0.5-2 cm, puberulent;

bracteoles 2-4 mm from flowers, green, linear, 2-4 mm, puberulent.

8-20(-40)-flowered, as wide as long or nearly so;

pedicel 1-4(-6) cm, pubescent;

bracteoles 6-15 mm from flowers, green, linear, 1.5-5 mm, puberulent.

Flowers

sepals whitish to pale lavender or purple, puberulent, lateral sepals forward pointing, 9-11 × 4-6 mm, spurs straight, as much as 45° above or below horizontal, 9-12 mm;

lower petal blades ± covering stamens, 3-5 mm, clefts 1-2 mm;

hairs centered, mostly near base of cleft, white.

sepals dark to light blue, rarely white, glabrous, lateral sepals spreading, 12-14 × 6-7 mm, spurs straight to decurved, within 30° of horizontal, 10-15 mm;

lower petal blades slightly elevated, ± exposing stamens, 4-5 mm, clefts 2-3 mm;

hairs mostly centered near base of cleft, yellow.

Fruits

7-12 mm, 2-2.5 times longer than wide, ± puberulent.

8-12 mm, 3-3.5 times longer than wide, nearly glabrous.

Seeds

± wing-margined;

seed coat cells elongate, surfaces smooth.

unwinged;

surface of each seed coat cell with swollen, blunt, hairlike structures, barely visible at 20x, otherwise smooth.

Delphinium newtonianum

Phenology

Flowering summer.

Flowering early summer.

Habitat

Rocky slopes in open deciduous woods and barrens, mainly on calcareous substrates, also shale and mafic and ultramafic rocks

Slopes in deciduous forest

Elevation

150-2000 m (500-6600 ft)

500-700 m (1600-2300 ft)

Distribution

AL; KY; MD; MO; NC; OH; PA; TN; VA; WV

[WildflowerSearch map]

[BONAP county map]

Discussion

No cases of hybridization are known. Delphinium newtonianum often occurs in mixed populations with D. tricorne. It normally does not begin flowering until 4-6 weeks after D. tricorne has finished.

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

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. barbeyi, D. basalticum, D. bicolor, D. brachycentrum, D. californicum, D. cardinale, D. carolinianum, D. decorum, D. depauperatum, D. distichum, D. elatum, 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. 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

Name authority

Aiton: Hort. Kew. 2: 244. (1789)

D. M. Moore: Rhodora 41: 196. (1939)

Web links

Local Web sites: MD Biodiversity, MO Plants
WildflowerSearch
iNaturalist (observations)
USDA Plants Database
LBJ Wildflower Center
SEINet
Plants of the World Online
Encyclopedia of Life
Wikipedia
Google Image Search

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).

Choose a data source: Flora of North America

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Flora of North America species comparison

Delphinium exaltatum

Delphinium newtonianum

Delphinium exaltatum

Delphinium newtonianum