Lathyrus rigidus
Encyclopedia
Lathyrus rigidus is a species of wild pea
known by the common name stiff pea. It is native to the Modoc Plateau
and surrounding areas in the western United States from northeastern California
to Idaho
. It is a plant of the sagebrush
scrub and other habitat in the region. This is a perennial herb forming a clump of short, erect stems. The leaves are made up of several pairs of leaflets 1 to 3 centimeters long each. The inflorescence
is a dense raceme
of 2 to 5 white or pink pea flowers each roughly 2 centimeters long. The fruit is a hairless legume pod.
Lathyrus
Lathyrus is a genus of flowering plant species known as sweet peas and vetchlings. Lathyrus is in the legume family Fabaceae and contains approximately 160 species. They are native to temperate areas, with a breakdown of 52 species in Europe, 30 species in North America, 78 in Asia, 24 in...
known by the common name stiff pea. It is native to the Modoc Plateau
Modoc Plateau
The Modoc Plateau lies in the northeast corner of California as well as parts of Oregon and Nevada. It is a mile-high expanse of lava flows with cinder cones, juniper flats, pine forests, and seasonal lakes. The plateau is thought to have been formed approximately 25 million years ago...
and surrounding areas in the western United States from northeastern 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...
to Idaho
Idaho
Idaho is a state in the Rocky Mountain area of the United States. The state's largest city and capital is Boise. Residents are called "Idahoans". Idaho was admitted to the Union on July 3, 1890, as the 43rd state....
. It is a plant of the sagebrush
Sagebrush
Sagebrush is a common name of a number of shrubby plant species in the genus Artemisia native to western North America;Or, the sagebrush steppe ecoregion, having one or more kinds of sagebrush, bunchgrasses and others;...
scrub and other habitat in the region. This is a perennial herb forming a clump of short, erect stems. The leaves are made up of several pairs of leaflets 1 to 3 centimeters long each. 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...
is a dense raceme
Raceme
A raceme is a type of inflorescence that is unbranched and indeterminate and bears pedicellate flowers — flowers having short floral stalks called pedicels — along the axis. In botany, axis means a shoot, in this case one bearing the flowers. In a raceme, the oldest flowers are borne...
of 2 to 5 white or pink pea flowers each roughly 2 centimeters long. The fruit is a hairless legume pod.