Dwarf Larkspur

Description:

This native perennial plant is about ½–2' tall. It consists of a loose cluster of basal leaves on long petioles and a flowering stalk with a few alternate leaves. The basal leaves are up to 4" long and across; they are palmately cleft into about 5 deep lobes, which are in turn divided into 2-3 shallow secondary lobes. These leaves are usually sparsely pubescent and they may have a few dentate teeth along the margins. Their petioles are pubescent or hairy and rather stout. The alternate leaves are clustered near the base of the flowering stalk and they are few in number; their appearance is similar to the basal leaves. The flowering stalk is erect, stout, and rather fleshy; it is whitish green or whitish red and usually covered with fine white hairs. Less often, this stalk is glabrous. A raceme of flowers up to 6-8" long occurs along the upper half of this stalk; each raceme may consist of 6-24 flowers. Each flower is about ¾–1" across, consisting of 5 petal-like sepals, 4 petals, and 3 inner pistils. The sepals spread outward from the center of the flower and they are usually some shade of purple or blue-violet; far less often, they are white. The upper sepal forms a long nectar spur behind the rest of the flower; this spur angles upward and is fairly straight. A few cobwebby hairs may occur along the nectar spur and the posterior surface of the sepals. The upper two petals are quite small and usually white toward the base; they extend backward in the nectar spur. The lower two petals are quite hairy and usually purple or blue-violet like the sepals. These small petals surround the whitish opening that leads to the nectar spur. The pedicels are about as long as the flowers and usually pubescent. The blooming period occurs during the late spring and lasts about 3 weeks. Each fertilized flower is replaced by three spreading follicles (a seed capsule that splits open along one side). Each follicle is oblongoid and angular, terminating in a short beak; it contains several chunky seeds. The root system is tuberous and can form vegetative offsets.

Habitat:

moist ravines and thinly wooded slopes (often rocky), thinly wooded bluffs, and partially shaded cliffs along river banks.