Galactia brachypoda
Galactia wrightii
smooth creeping milkpea
Wright's milkpea
procumbent, creeping, not rooting at nodes, sometimes weakly twining distally, minutely strigose, hairs retrorsely or antrorsely appressed;
some or most internodes, especially proximally, longer than largest leaflet of adjacent node.
procumbent proximally, weakly twining distally, strongly lignescent, densely to sparsely strigose, hairs retrorsely appressed to slightly spreading.
3, blades elliptic to elliptic-lanceolate or broadly lanceolate to oblong-elliptic, sometimes linear-elliptic, (8–)15–45(–60) × (4–)10–25(–32) mm, ± leathery, veins slightly but distinctly raised on adaxial or both surfaces, apex obtuse to rounded or shallowly retuse, surfaces moderately to densely short-strigose with closely appressed hairs and lighter green but not glaucous abaxially, glabrous or sparsely short-strigose or minutely hirtellous and darker, slightly glossy or not adaxially.
3, blades oblong-elliptic to elliptic-ovate, 15–48 × 5–18 mm, herbaceous, veins not raised, apex rounded to obtuse or shallowly retuse, surfaces moderately to densely strigose-sericeous and glaucous abaxially, sparsely to densely short-strigose-sericeous with closely appressed hairs to pubescent with soft, spreading-erect hairs, sometimes strigose to glabrous, adaxially.
flowers usually (3–)5–15(–25), rarely 1 or 2, in pseudoracemes on distal 3/4 of shorter axes or usually on distal 1/5–1/4 of longer axes, often fasciculate distally;
axis (5–)20–80(–150) mm.
flowers (2–)5–18(–30) in pseudoracemes, usually in fascicles, axis rarely 10 mm and 2- or 3-flowered;
axis (10–)35–200(–250) mm.
calyx 5–7 mm, sparsely strigose to glabrate, lobes greenish yellow to tan on inner surface when dry;
corolla not persisting after anthesis, lavender or violet to purplish, bright pink, or pinkish, lighter when dry, 11–15 mm.
calyx 5–7 mm, loosely short-strigose to hirsute-pubescent, lobes greenish yellow to tan on inner surface when dry;
corolla not persisting after anthesis, pink to purple-rose to lavender, lighter when dry, 11–12 mm.
straight, (25–)30–60 × 4–5(–6) mm, densely strigose to strigose-sericeous, glabrescent.
straight, 25–50 × 4–5 mm, moderately to densely strigose to strigose-sericeous.
(3–)5–8(–12).
(3–)5–9.
Galactia brachypoda
Galactia wrightii
Galactia brachypoda is a coastal plain species that ranges from Maryland and Virginia to Alabama. The species is characterized by its essentially prostrate habit, mostly non-twining, short-strigose (antrorse or retrorse) stems (sometimes weakly twining distally), subcoriaceous leaflets with raised venation, and relatively large corollas. Plants of G. brachypoda with distally twining stems and relatively small leaves might be mistaken for G. regularis; the latter has climbing and consistently twining stems with looser and non-appressed vestiture, thinner leaves, and longer inflorescences with curved axes and smaller, less congested flowers.
W. H. Duncan (1979b) mapped three morpho-geographic entities of Galactia brachypoda, emphasizing stem vestiture; the widespread entity has appressed-retrorse hairs, while the other two have appressed-antrorse hairs. There appears to be no other difference that would consistently distinguish among these population systems and thus all are identified here as G. brachypoda. Analogous, alternate orientation of cauline vestiture occurs in G. joselyniae, G. microphylla, G. pinetorum, and G. smallii (G. L. Nesom 2015).
Many plants having antrorse hairs are encountered in Georgia, South Carolina, and southeastern North Carolina; these have narrower leaflets than elsewhere in the range.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Galactia wrightii is characterized by twining stems, mostly oblong-elliptic leaflets with glaucous abaxial surfaces, relatively long inflorescences with numerous flowers and relatively large corollas, and strigose-sericeous fruits. The type of var. mollissima is a plant with vestiture more spreading than normal; such variants are scattered through the range in Arizona, as cited by Kearney and Peebles, as well as in Texas.
Plants in southwestern New Mexico and southeastern Arizona (especially the Huachuca Mountains but not the Chiricahua Mountains) tend to have reduced vestiture; the leaves are sometimes completely glabrous. Such plants extend southward in Mexico along the Chihuahua-Sonora border region. Intermediates are numerous, especially in Arizona, and no distinct boundary seems evident. In Texas, G. wrightii is known from four counties of the trans-Pecos and Big Bend regions.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
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USDA Plants Database
