Astragalus tricarinatus
Encyclopedia
Astragalus tricarinatus is a rare species of milkvetch
known by the common name triplerib milkvetch, or triple-ribbed milkvetch.
It is endemic to California
, where it can be found in the region where the San Bernardino Mountains
meet the Mojave Desert
and the Colorado Desert
. It grows in desert scrub and expanses of rock litter amongst stands of Joshua trees. The plant is known from only one location and there were twenty individuals remaining there in 1998, when it was federally listed as an endangered species
.
holds 5 to 15 cream-colored flowers each about 2 centimeters in length.
The fruit is a flat legume pod up to about 4 centimeters long. The pod is curved and has three distinct ribs.
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 triplerib milkvetch, or triple-ribbed milkvetch.
It is endemic to 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...
, where it can be found in the region where the San Bernardino Mountains
San Bernardino Mountains
The San Bernardino Mountains are a short transverse mountain range north and east of San Bernardino in Southern California in the United States. The mountains run for approximately 60 miles east-west on the southern edge of the Mojave Desert in southwestern San Bernardino County, north of the...
meet the Mojave Desert
Mojave Desert
The Mojave Desert occupies a significant portion of southeastern California and smaller parts of central California, southern Nevada, southwestern Utah and northwestern Arizona, in the United States...
and the Colorado Desert
Colorado Desert
California's Colorado Desert is a part of the larger Sonoran Desert, which extends across southwest North America. The Colorado Desert region encompasses approximately , reaching from the Mexican border in the south to the higher-elevation Mojave Desert in the north and from the Colorado River in...
. It grows in desert scrub and expanses of rock litter amongst stands of Joshua trees. The plant is known from only one location and there were twenty individuals remaining there in 1998, when it was federally listed as an endangered species
Endangered species
An endangered species is a population of organisms which is at risk of becoming extinct because it is either few in numbers, or threatened by changing environmental or predation parameters...
.
Description
This is a perennial herb growing in clumps up to about 25 centimeters tall. The leaves are up to 20 centimeters long and made up of several silvery-green hairy leaflets. The inflorescenceInflorescence
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 5 to 15 cream-colored flowers each about 2 centimeters in length.
The fruit is a flat legume pod up to about 4 centimeters long. The pod is curved and has three distinct ribs.