Delphinium nuttallianum |
Delphinium glaucescens |
|
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dwarf, meadow, Nuttall's larkspur, or Sonne's larkspur, slim, thin-petal larkspur, two-lobe larkspur, upland larkspur |
glaucous larkspur, glaucus larkspur, smooth larkspur |
|
Stems | unbranched, 10-40(-70) cm; base reddish, pubescence variable. |
35-70(-100) cm; base ± reddish, glabrous, glaucous. |
Leaves | blade round, 1-6 × 2-12 cm, nearly glabrous; ultimate lobes 5-21, 5 or more extending more than 3/5 distance to petiole, width 1-7(-14) mm (basal), 0.5-6 mm (cauline), widest at middle or in proximal 1/2. |
blade pentagonal to round, 2-9 × 3-14 cm, margins seldom laciniate, nearly glabrous; ultimate lobes 5-17, width 2-8 mm, tips abruptly tapered to mucronate apex; midcauline leaf lobes more than 3 times longer than wide. |
Inflorescences | 4-18(-48)-flowered, at least 2 times as long as wide; pedicel 0.8-6 cm, pubescence variable; bracteoles 3-8(-18) mm from flowers, green to blue, linear, 3-7 mm, pubescence variable. |
10-25-flowered; pedicel 0.5-1.5 cm, puberulent to glabrous; bracteoles 2-20 mm from flowers, green, linear, 3-8 mm, nearly glabrous. |
Flowers | sepals usually bluish purple, rarely white to pink, puberulent, lateral sepals reflexed or spreading, 8-21 × 3-10 mm, spurs decurved to straight, ascending 20-60° above horizontal, 8-23 mm; lower petal blades elevated, exposing stamens, blue to purple, except sometimes in white-flowered plants, 4-11 mm, clefts 2-5 mm; hairs mostly on inner lobes below junction of blade and claw, white, rarely yellow. |
sepals dark blue, nearly glabrous, lateral sepals spreading to reflexed, 8-12 × 3-4 mm, spurs straight, ascending 40-90°, 9-13 mm; lower petal blades ± covering stamens, 3-5 mm, clefts 1-2 mm; hairs centered, mostly near base of cleft, white. |
Fruits | 7-22 mm, 3.5-5 times longer than wide, glabrous to puberulent. |
7-13 mm, 3.4-4 times longer than wide, puberulent. |
Seeds | winged or not; seed coat cell surfaces smooth or roughened, blunt hairs absent. |
± wing-margined; seed coat cells narrow but short, surfaces smooth. |
2n | = 16. |
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Delphinium nuttallianum |
Delphinium glaucescens |
|
Phenology | Flowering spring (-early summer). | Flowering summer. |
Habitat | Open coniferous woods, grassy sage scrub, meadow edges and well drained streamsides (generally not in very wet sites) | Rocky slopes in subalpine coniferous woods |
Elevation | 300-3500 m (1000-11500 ft) | 2000-4000 m (6600-13100 ft) |
Distribution |
AZ; CA; CO; ID; MT; NM; NV; OR; UT; WA; WY; BC
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ID; MT; WY
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Discussion | Delphinium nuttallianum represents an extremely difficult complex, with many variations in a number of morphologic traits. The complex has been and continues to be a major source of confusion for identification of Delphinium in North America. Type specimens of D. nuttallianum represent plants growing under dry conditions in open areas. These are typically found at 1200-2000 m in sage scrub or lower montane forest. Delphinium nuttallianum may be confused with D. andersonii, D. antoninum, D. depauperatum, D. gracilentum, and two subspecies of D. patens (subsp. patens and subsp. montanum). Features that may be used to separate D. nuttallianum from the first four, are enumerated under the respective species discussions. From D. patens subsp. patens, D. nuttallianum may be distinguished by its narrower leaf lobes, larger fruits, and more compact inflorescence. The frequent presence of glandular hairs in the inflorescence of D. patens subsp. montanum, contrasted with their absence in D. nuttallianum, will separate these taxa. Dwarfed plants of D. polycladon may be confused with D. nuttallianum. The latter, however may be distinguished by its ringed seeds, and it does not have prominent buds or sigmoid pedicel. Hybrids have been seen between Delphinium nuttallianum and D. andersonii, D. depauperatum (D. ×burkei Greene), D. distichum (D. ×diversicolor Rydberg), D. nudicaule, and D. polycladon. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Hybrids with Delphinium glaucum are known. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Source | FNA vol. 3. | FNA vol. 3. |
Parent taxa | Ranunculaceae > Delphinium > sect. Diedropetala > subsect. Grumosa | Ranunculaceae > Delphinium > sect. Diedropetala > subsect. Exaltata |
Sibling taxa | ||
Synonyms | D. pauciflorum, D. nuttallianum var. fulvum, D. nuttallianum var. levicaule, D. sonnei | |
Name authority | Pritzel: in Walpers, Repert. Bot. Syst. 1: 744. (1842) | Rydberg: Mem. New York Bot. Gard. 1: 155. (1900) |
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