Astragalus utahensis

Low, tufted, and subacaulescent or more commonly diffusely caulescent and loosely matted, with a taproot and shortly forking caudex, the stems and herbage densely pannose-tomentose with extremely fine, entangled, sinuous and curly hairs up to 1.5-2.5 mm. long, the cottony, not at all lustrous vesture concealing the surface of the white-felted leaflets; stems either very short and concealed by stipules, or more commonly developed, prostrate and radiating, up to 1.5 (2) dm. long, the internodes short, up to (but commonly less than) 3.5 cm. long; stipules membranous or early becoming so, ovate-triangular, ovate- or lance-acuminate, or -caudate, 3-10 mm. long, semiaxplexicaul-decurrent, dorsally tomentose but sometimes glabrescent distally; leaves (1.5) 3-12 cm. long, with flaccid, feebly persistent or deciduous petiole and (5) 9-19 broadly obovate, elliptic-obovate, or suborbicular, obtuse, rarely truncate-emarginate, exceptionally rhombic-ovate and acute, flat or loosely folded leaflets (2) 4-15 mm. long; peduncles rather stout, (1) 3-10 cm. long, equaling or shorter than the leaves, ascending at anthesis, prostrate in fruit; racemes shortly but loosely, sometimes subumbellately 2-8- flowered, the axis little elongating, 0.5-2.5 cm. long in fruit; bracts membranous, lanceolate, lance-, or, more rarely, ovate-acuminate, 4-9 mm. long; pedicels ascending, at anthesis 2-3 (3.7) mm., in fruit somewhat thickened, 2.3-4.3 mm. long; bracteoles commonly 0, rarely present and up to 1.5 mm. long; calyx (12) 13-17 mm. long, villous-tomentose like the herbage but more thinly so, the hairs white or partly fuscous, the obliquely campanulate or obconic disc 1-1.8 mm. deep, the membranous, purplish, broadly cylindric or at length tumid and then oblong-ellipsoid tube (8.5) 9.6-12.8 mm. long, 4.6-5.9 mm. in diameter, the firmer, subulate or lance-subulate teeth (2) 2.4-4 (4.7) mm. long; petals bright pink-purple, with a pale striate eye in banner; banner recurved through ± 45°, broadly oblanceolate or rhombic-spatulate, (21) 24-29 (31) mm. long, 10.5-15 (16.5) mm. wide; wings (19) 22-27 mm. long, the claws 11-14 (14.5) mm., the linear- or lance-oblong, obtuse, straight or slightly incurved blades 12-14.5 mm. long, 2.8-3.8 mm. wide; keel (16) 17-22 mm. long, the claws 11-14 mm., the lunate blades 7-8.9 mm. long, 3-3.9 mm. wide, gently incurved through 80-100° to the rounded apex; anthers 0.6-0.8 mm. long; pod ascending (humistrate), sessile on a glabrous, stipelike gynophore (1) 1.4-2.5 mm. long, the body (shorn of the vesture) lance-ellipsoid or narrowly ovoid-acuminate, 1.7-3 (3.5) cm. long, (5) 5.5—7.5 mm. in diameter, broadly cuneate or rounded at base, tapering gradually (rarely abruptly) into the erect or slightly incurved, laterally compressed beak, elsewhere obcompressed, openly and shallowly sulcate ventrally at and below the middle, a trifle sulcate or merely flattened dorsally, the thinly fleshy valves becoming stiffly papery or thinly leathery, reticulate, 0.2-0.3 mm. thick when ripe, so densely shaggy-villous with fine, horizontally spreading, lustrous, silky, cream- colored or pale yellow hairs 4-8 mm. long as to conceal the shape and surface of the fruit; dehiscence apical, tardy; ovules (22) 25-31; seeds light or dark brown, smooth or nearly so but scarcely lustrous, 2.1-3 mm. long.—Collections: 76 (x); representative: J. & C. Christ 19,769 (ID, NY); Ripley & Barneby 3588, 4417, 6231 (CAS, RSA); Watson 275 (GH, NY); Tidestrom 2108 (GH, NY); Jones 5324 (POM, NY).