Plants perennial, 10–30(–50) cm, sparsely strigulose. Leaves 3–10 cm; leaflets (5–)9–17(or 19), blades broadly obovate, obovate-cuneate, or oblong-elliptic to suborbiculate or oblanceolate, (3–)5–15 mm, apex retuse or obtuse. Peduncles 1–3.5 cm. Racemes 8–18(–22)-flowered; axis 0.5–3(–3.5) cm in fruit. Flow­ers 7.4–11 mm; calyx 4.1–6.4 mm, tube 2.8–4.2 mm, lobes 1–2.2 mm; corolla whitish or yellowish, sometimes faintly lilac. Legumes green, usually mottled, becoming stramineous or brownish, obliquely ovoid-acuminate to lanceoloid-acuminate, strongly to scarcely inflated, 10–23 × (3–)4.5–10 mm, semibilocular, stiffly papery, opaque or nearly so, usually thinly strigulose, rarely puberulent; beak 4–9 mm, unilocular. Seeds (15 or)16–21. 2n = 22.

Phenology: Flowering May–early Jul.
Habitat: Often on volcanic soils, on basalt, with sagebrush and bunchgrass, in ponderosa pine and western juniper communities.
Elevation: 200–1500 m.

Distribution

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B.C., Calif., Idaho, Nev., Oreg., Wash.

Discussion

Variety lentiginosus is widespread in the northern part of its range and is partially sympatric with vars. platyphyllidius and salinus in the southern part of its range. It is transitional to both.

Selected References

None.

Lower Taxa

None.