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 Leaves Max Licher @http://swbiodiversity.org |  Plant Leslie Landrum @http://swbiodiversity.org, Usage Rights: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike (CC BY-SA) |  Fruit Patrick Alexander @http://swbiodiversity.org, Usage Rights: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike (CC BY-SA) | | | |
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Origin:
Native
Life Cycle:
Annual or perennial
General Desc:
Vine-like annual or short-lived perennial with prominent 3-lobed leaves; grows flat on the ground or is semi-erect (climbing on other plants). Pink, butterfly-like flowers grow in clusters at the leaf axils (between leaf and stem) or at the stem tips.
Identification notes: Vine-like; branches many from the base; distinctive 3-lobed leaves, the lobes triangular and sometimes quite large, flowers showy banner, wing and keel, pink, leaf axils or at stem tips; sepals much shorter than the flower lobes; 9 stamens fused, 1 free.
Height:
Up to 4 feet long
Habitat Description: Found in rocky soils on slopes, hillsides, in canyons, washes and roadsides.
Plant Communities:
Desert Scrub, Interior Chaparral, Disturbed Areas
Elevation: 1000 - 4000 feet
Color:
Pink
Shape:
Irregular in elongated clusters
Tubular:
Y
Flowering Period:
Oct - Dec
Description:
Flower stalk often has 2 flowers per cluster but flowers may occur singly. Each flower grows up to 1/2 inch wide, has 5 petals consisting of 1 wide upper banner petal, 2 flattened side wing petals and a keel of 2 fused spiral-shaped center petals.
Leaf Color:
Dark green
Leaf Type:
Compound
Leaf Shape:
Round or oval
Leaf Margin:
Lobed
Leaf Attachment:
Alternate
Leaves Clasp:
N
Hairs:
Leaves and stems
Spines:
N
Leaf Description:
Leaves are shiny, grow up to 1-1/5 inches long and 1 inch wide, are oval in outline and are divided into 3 triangular leaflets with rounded lobes. Stems and leaves have a sparse covering of short hairs, some of which are minutely hooked.
Fruit Color: Green
Fruit Type: Pod
Fruit Notes: Fruit is a curved pod about 1/4 inch wide and up to 2 inches long and has a smooth or slightly hairy surface. The pod breaks open when mature to release its seeds.
Seed Notes: 1 to several seeds are produced in the fruit. The seeds are brown, 1/16 to 1/4 inch long, oblong to kidney-shaped with a wrinkled net-like surface.
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