Lupinus grayi
Lupinus grayi | |
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Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
(unranked): | Angiosperms |
(unranked): | Eudicots |
(unranked): | Rosids |
Order: | Fabales |
Family: | Fabaceae |
Subfamily: | Faboideae |
Tribe: | Genisteae |
Genus: | Lupinus |
Species: | L. grayi |
Binomial name | |
Lupinus grayi S.Watson | |
Lupinus grayi is a species of lupine known by the common name Sierra lupine. It is endemic to California,[1] where its distribution extends the length of the Sierra Nevada and its foothills and includes the Tehachapi Mountains.
It is a common plant of the mountain forests, where it sometimes carpets meadows with its woolly green herbage and purple flower spikes. This is a low, prostrate perennial herb forming spreading mats 20 or 30 centimeters high. Each palmate leaf is made up of 5 to 11 leaflets up to 3.5 centimeters long.
The inflorescence bears dense whorls of flowers each just over a centimeter long. Each flower is purple or blue with a yellow or reddish patch on the banner. The fruit is a hairy legume pod which is up to 3.5 centimetres (1.4 in) in length.
References
- ↑ "Sierra lupine". USDA. Plants Profile. Retrieved September 1, 2009.