Angiosperms: Dicotyledons

Fabaceae
Legume Family

• Stem: perennial; very short with basal leaves.
• Leaves: basal; pinnately compound, 5” to 8” by 2 1/2”; five to seven pairs of leaflets, 1 1/2” by 3/16”, tapered to both ends; fine silky hairs above and below.
• Inflorescence: up to fifteen flowers in 3” to 4” spikes on a hairy flower stalk that extends above the leaves; one to six flower stalks per plant.
• Flowers: corolla purple, 3/4” long; calyx hairy, purple, tubular, 3/8” long with hair-tipped lobes; flowering from late May to mid-June.
• Fruits: inflated pods, 3/4” long by 1/4” in diameter, long-tapering to the tips, hairy, dark brown; fruiting begins in early June.
• Habitat: common on Loess Hills prairies and dry prairies.
• Bibliography from Biodiversity Heritage Library
• Vascular Plants of Iowa