Delphinium luteum |
Delphinium decorum |
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golden larkspur, yellow larkspur |
coast larkspur, coastal larkspur, larkspur, low larkspur, yellowtinge larkspur |
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Stems | 20-40(-55) cm; base often reddish, nearly glabrous. |
5-25(-42) cm; base reddish or not, at least two proximal internodes long-pubescent. |
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Leaves | blade round to pentagonal, 1-5 × 2-10 cm, nearly glabrous; ultimate lobes 3-5, width 8-30 mm (basal), 5-15 mm (cauline). |
blade deltate to pentagonal, 1-2.5 × 1.5-4.5 cm, ± puberulent; ultimate lobes 3-15, width 3-17 mm (basal), 1-8 mm (cauline), widest at middle or in proximal 1/2. |
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Inflorescences | 5-25(-37)-flowered; pedicel (1-)3-5(-7) cm, puberulent; bracteoles 6-10(-17) mm from flowers, green, linear-lanceolate, 6-7 mm, nearly glabrous. |
2-10(-20)-flowered; pedicel 1-4(-6) cm, puberulent to glabrous; bracteoles (3-)7-11(-21) mm from flowers, green to blue, linear-lanceolate, 6-9(-12) mm, puberulent. |
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Flowers | sepals bright yellow, puberulent, appearing waxy, lateral sepals ± forward pointing, (11-)14-16 × (6-)9-13 mm, spur straight, ca. 30° below horizontal, 11-20 mm; lower petal blades elevated, exposing stamens, 3-4 mm, clefts 0.5-1.5 mm; hairs sparse or absent, ± evenly distributed if present, white to yellow. |
sepals bluish purple (somewhat faded on drying), puberulent, lateral sepals spreading, (11-)15-20(-24) × 6-11(-15) mm, spur straight, 0-30° above horizontal, 13-20 mm; lower petal blades ± covering stamens, 6-11 mm, cleft 2-4 mm; hairs on entire surface, densest on inner lobes, yellow or white. |
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Fruits | 11-14 mm, 3.5-4.5 times longer than wide, glabrous. |
9-20 mm, 3-4.5 times longer than wide, glabrous to puberulent. |
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Seeds | unwinged; seed coat cell surfaces smooth. |
wing-margined; seed coat cells ± aggregate in small wavy ridges, cell surfaces ± roughened, without swollen, blunt hairs. |
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Delphinium luteum |
Delphinium decorum |
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Phenology | Flowering late winter-mid spring. | |||||
Habitat | Wet cliffs, coastal grassland or chaparral | |||||
Elevation | 0-50 m (0-200 ft) | |||||
Distribution |
CA
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CA
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Discussion | Of conservation concern. Delphinium luteum is presently known from only three populations. It is known to hybridize with D. decorum and with D. nudicaule. Populations of D. hesperium subsp. hesperium also occur at the type locality; D. luteum flowers earlier and hybrids are not known. Delphinium luteum is not likely to be mistaken for any other species of Delphinium. It has been treated as a variety of D. nudicaule and is closely related to that species. Sepals of the infrequent yellow-flowered phase of D. nudicaule, however, have a much drabber appearance compared with the bright shining yellow of the sepals in D. luteum. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Subspecies 2 (2 in the flora). Delphinium decorum and D. menziesii have been confused. Delphinium menziesii usually has darker, colorfast (nonfading) sepals with less lavender, and a more northern distribution than D. decorum. It also has more finely dissected leaves than D. decorum subsp. decorum. Often confused with Delphinium patens, D. decorum is sometimes circumscribed to include that species. The spreading, fading, blue-purple sepals, pubescent proximal portion of stems, and large lower petal blade of D. decorum, compared to the reflexed, colorfast, bluer sepals, proximally glabrous stems, and smaller lower petal blades of D. patens, adequately distinguish the two taxa. (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. Bicoloria | Ranunculaceae > Delphinium > sect. Diedropetala > subsect. Grumosa | ||||
Sibling taxa | ||||||
Subordinate taxa | ||||||
Name authority | A. Heller: Bull. S. Calif. Acad. Sci. 6: 68. (1903) | Fischer & C. A. Meyer: Ind. Sem. Hort. Petrop. 3: 650. (1837) | ||||
Web links |