purple prairie clover

not listed

N5? - Secure

SNR - Unranked

not listed

Purple prairie clover is a 8″ to 36″ tall, erect, perennial forb that rises on multiple stems from a deep, stout taproot.

The stems are erect, slender, ribbed, and green. They are unbranched below the middle, branched or unbranched above the middle. They may be hairless or sparsely covered with short, matted or tangled, soft, woolly hairs.

The leaves are alternate and short-stalked. They are pinnately divided into usually 5, sometimes 3 or 7, very narrow leaflets. At the base of the leaf stalk there is a pair of leaf-like appendages (stipules). The stipules are linear and about 3 ⁄16″ long.

The leaflets are linear to linear oblong, 5 ⁄16″ to 1″ long, and about 1 ⁄16″ wide. They are short-stalked or nearly stalkless. The upper surface is sparsely covered with short, matted or tangled, soft, woolly hairs. The lower surface is dotted with translucent, sunken glands. The margins are untoothed and are rolled inward toward the upper side. The leaflets roll backward when they dry.

The inflorescence is a dense spike of numerous flowers at the end of the stem. The flowers at the bottom of the spike bloom first. The flowers above the bottom bloom in a ring and the spike continues to lengthen as the season progresses. The spike cone-shaped at first, eventually becoming cylinder-shaped and ¾″ to 2¾″ long. Each flower, except the lowest, is subtended by a short, papery, modified leaf (bract). The bract is inversely egg-shaped, about 3 ⁄16″ long, and hairy. It tapers to a dark, awl-shaped tip.

The flowers are 3 ⁄16″ to ¼″ long. There are 5 sepals, 5 petals, 5 stamens, and 1 style. The sepals are united at the base into a bell-shaped, ⅛″ long calyx tube then separated into 5 lobes. They are densely covered with silky or woolly hairs. The stamens are fused at their base into a white, ⅛″ long column. The petals are pinkish-purple and are distinctly narrowed at the base (clawed). Like other flowers in the pea family, they are arranged into an upper keel, formed by the fused upper two petals, two lateral wings, and a lower banner. Unlike other pea family flowers, they do not appear butterfly-like. Only the banner is attached at the base of the flower. The wings and keel are attached to the staminal column and appear as staminal appendages. The filaments above the staminal column are about ⅛″ long and are tipped with yellow anthers. The stamens and style protrude beyond the petals. The flowers are not fragrant.

The fruit is a tiny, egg-shaped pod enclosed within the persistent calyx. It contains 1 seed.

8″ to 36″

Pinkish-purple

White prairie clover (Dalea candida) leaves have 5, 7, or 9 leaflets. The leaflets are much wider, up to ¼″ wide. The flowers are white.

Dry to moderate moisture. Prairies, meadows. Full sun.

June to August

Sources

2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 24, 28, 29, 30.

Native

Common

Bumble Bee on Purple Prairie Clover....

Taken at Sandpiper Prairie SNA rural Norman Co. Mn. July 20 2018.

Habitat

Plant

Tillered Plant

Inflorescence

Leaves

Infructescence

Location: Sandpiper Prairie SNA rural Norman Co. Mn.