Astragalus johannis-howellii
Encyclopedia
Astragalus johannis-howellii is a species of milkvetch
known by the common name Long Valley milkvetch. It is native to eastern California
, including Long Valley
in Mono County
, and its distribution extends over the border into Nevada
. It is a plant of Great Basin
scrub habitat.
This is a small perennial herb forming loose clumps of very thin branching stems up to 20 centimeters long. The leaves are a few centimeters long and are made up of many tiny folded oval-shaped leaflets. The inflorescence
holds 6 to 12 off-white pale-striped flowers, each a few millimeters long. The fruit is a hanging legume pod up to a centimeter in length, thinly hairy and papery in texture. This species was named for the botanist John Thomas Howell
.
Astragalus
Astragalus is a large genus of about 3,000 species of herbs and small shrubs, belonging to the legume family Fabaceae, subfamily Faboideae. The genus is native to temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere...
known by the common name Long Valley milkvetch. It is native to eastern California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, including Long Valley
Long Valley Caldera
Long Valley Caldera is a depression in eastern California that is adjacent to Mammoth Mountain. The valley is one of the largest calderas on earth, measuring about long and wide . The elevation of the floor of the caldera is in the east and in the west...
in Mono County
Mono County, California
Mono County is a county located in the east central portion of the U.S. state of California, to the east of the Sierra Nevada between Yosemite National Park and Nevada. As of the 2010 census, the population was 14,202, up from 12,853 at the 2000 census...
, and its distribution extends over the border into Nevada
Nevada
Nevada is a state in the western, mountain west, and southwestern regions of the United States. With an area of and a population of about 2.7 million, it is the 7th-largest and 35th-most populous state. Over two-thirds of Nevada's people live in the Las Vegas metropolitan area, which contains its...
. It is a plant of Great Basin
Great Basin
The Great Basin is the largest area of contiguous endorheic watersheds in North America and is noted for its arid conditions and Basin and Range topography that varies from the North American low point at Badwater Basin to the highest point of the contiguous United States, less than away at the...
scrub habitat.
This is a small perennial herb forming loose clumps of very thin branching stems up to 20 centimeters long. The leaves are a few centimeters long and are made up of many tiny folded oval-shaped leaflets. The inflorescence
Inflorescence
An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Strictly, it is the part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed and which is accordingly modified...
holds 6 to 12 off-white pale-striped flowers, each a few millimeters long. The fruit is a hanging legume pod up to a centimeter in length, thinly hairy and papery in texture. This species was named for the botanist John Thomas Howell
John Thomas Howell
John Thomas Howell was an American botanist and Eriogonum expert. He was the assistant of Alice Eastwood.The genus Johanneshowellia of the Polygonaceae family is named in his honor.-References:...
.