Flora of North America species comparison

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Delphinium variegatum

Delphinium brachycentrum

royal larkspur

arctic larkspur, northern larkspur
Stems

(10-)20-50(-80) cm;

base reddish or not, not longitudinally ridged, long-pubescent.

20-50(-80) cm;

base often reddish, pubescent.
Leaves

blade round to pentagonal, 1-4.5 × 2-6 cm, pubescent; ultimate lobes 3-15, width 3-8 mm (basal), 2-5 mm (cauline).

blade round to pentagonal, 1.5-6 × 3-11 cm, puberulent; ultimate lobes 5-15, width 1-7(-15) mm.
Inflorescences

(4-)6-17(-20)-flowered, open;

pedicel 0.5-3(-7) cm, usually puberulent;

bracteoles 2-7(-23) mm from flowers, green, linear-lanceolate, 3-8 mm, puberulent.

5-18-flowered;

pedicel 1-4.5 cm, pubescent;

bracteoles 2-7 mm from flowers, blue, linear, 5-8 mm, puberulent.
Flowers

sepals usually deep royal blue, sometimes bright blue to light blue or white, ± finely pubescent, lateral sepals spreading, 10-18(-25) × 6-10 mm, spurs straight, ascending ca. 30° above horizontal, 10-19 mm;

lower petal blades slightly elevated, ± exposing stamens, 4-11 mm, clefts 0.5-3.5 mm;

hairs sparse, more on inner lobes than outer lobe or centered, scattered on margins, white or yellow.

sepals dark blue, apex rounded, puberulent, lateral sepals forward pointing, 17-24 × 7-9 mm, spurs straight to slightly decurved, ascending 30-60° above horizontal, 15-17 mm;

lower petal blades ± covering stamens, 5-7 mm, clefts 0.5-1.5 mm;

hairs sparse, local, centered, mostly above base of cleft, white.
Fruits

9-19 mm, 2.2-3.8 times longer than wide, ± puberulent.

14-17 mm, 3.5-4 times longer than wide, pubescent.
Seeds

not echinate, appearing ± smooth to naked eye;

seed coat cells with margins ± undulate, surfaces roughened.

wing-margined;

seed coat cells ± elongate, surfaces roughened.

Delphinium variegatum

Delphinium brachycentrum
Phenology Flowering summer.
Habitat Well-drained tundra slopes
Elevation 0-1600 m (0-5200 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
CA
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
AK; YT; e Asia
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Subspecies 3 (3 in the flora).

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

Hybrids with Delphinium glaucum are known as D. ×nutans A. Nelson.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Key
1. Long hairs dense on base of stem; sepals usually deep royal blue; mainland.
subsp. variegatum
1. Long hairs sparse on proximal portion of stems; sepals white to bright blue; islands.
→ 2
2. Sepals bright blue to light blue.
subsp. thornei
2. Sepals white to light blue.
subsp. kinkiense
Source FNA vol. 3. FNA vol. 3.
Parent taxa Ranunculaceae > Delphinium > sect. Diedropetala > subsect. Echinata Ranunculaceae > Delphinium > sect. Diedropetala > subsect. Exaltata
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. 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. viridescens, D. wootonii, D. xantholeucum
D. alabamicum, D. alpestre, D. andersonii, D. andesicola, D. antoninum, D. bakeri, D. barbeyi, D. basalticum, D. bicolor, 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
Subordinate taxa
D. variegatum subsp. kinkiense, D. variegatum subsp. thornei, D. variegatum subsp. variegatum
Synonyms D. chamissonis
Name authority Torrey & A. Gray: Fl. N. Amer. 1: 32. 183: not D. variegatum Baillon 1883 Ledebour: Fl. Ross. 1: 60. (1841)
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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