Plants tuft-, cushion-, or mound-forming, 0.5–3+ dm wide, appearing acaulescent, silvery-strigose; from branched caudex, branches with thatch of persistent petioles. Stems obscured by stipules and marcescent leaf bases. Leaves palmately trifoliolate, 1–13 cm; stipules sometimes rup­tured in age, 6–18 mm, hyaline; leaflet blades spatulate to elliptic, (3–)7–27(–37) mm, apex acute to obtuse, surfaces silvery-strigose. Peduncles obsolete. Racemes 1–3-flowered, capitate; axis very short in fruit; bracts tridentate, 4.5–7.6 mm; bracteoles 0(or 1). Pedicels 0–1.6 mm. Flowers 16–29 mm; calyx 9.3–18(–20) mm, loosely villous, tube (6.5–)10–14(–16) mm, lobes linear or narrowly subulate, 1.6–4 mm; corolla usually whitish to ochroleucous, rarely purple, petals usually glabrous, banner rarely puberulent adaxially; banner not differ­entiated into blade and claw; keel 10.4–21.8 mm. Legumes straight, ovoid-ellipsoid, 6–10 × 2.5–5 mm, fleshy becoming leathery, densely strigose-hirsutulous. Seeds 10–17.

Distribution

w, c North America.

Discussion

Varieties 2 (2 in the flora).

Astragalus gilviflorus is found from southern Alberta, southern Saskatchewan, and southwestern Manitoba southward to northeastern Utah, southern Wyoming, through the Dakotas to western Nebraska and northeastern Colorado.

Astragalus gilviflorus is a rather common species in the prairie-steppe communities of the high plains.

Phaca caespitosa Nuttall (1818) (not Astragalus caespitosus Pallas, 1800–1803) and Orophaca triphylla Isely are illegitimate names that pertain here.

Selected References

None.

Lower Taxa

Astragalus gilviflorus var. gilviflorus, Astragalus gilviflorus var. purpureus

Key

1	Corollas ochroleucous.	Astragalus gilviflorus var. gilviflorus
1	Corollas purple.	Astragalus gilviflorus var. purpureus