Pringle's Prairie Clover

Thornbera pringlei (A. Gray) Rydberg
Dalea Pringlei A. Gray, Proc. Am. Acad. 17: 201. 1882. Parosela Pringlei A. Heller, Cat. N. Am. PI. ed. 2. 6. 1900.
A perennial, suffrutescent at the base, 3-6 dm. high, glabrous and glaucous, almost glandless; leaves 4-6 cm. long, ascending; stipules subulate, 1-2 mm. long; rachis glabrous and glandless, except the minute gland-like stipels; leaflets 19-47, oblong, 2-5 mm. long, obtuse or acutish, glabrous on both sides, finely glandular-dotted beneath; peduncles 3-10 cm. long; spikes 3-10 long, 7-8 mm. thick; bracts ovate, acuminate, rather persistent, dark, pilose and glandular-dotted, slightly exceeding the calyx; calyx-tube campanulate, 2 mm. long, pilose, 10-ribbed, with a row of small glands in the intervals; lobes lance-subulate, pilose, about equaling the tube; corolla rose-purple; blade of the banner rhombic-ovate, 1.5 mm. long, the claw 2.5 mm. long; blades of the other petals obliquely oval or elliptic, 2 mm. long, with a short claw, scarcely 0.5 mm. long; pod densely pilose, glandular-dotted.
Type locality: Santa Catalina Mountains, southern Arizona.
Distribution: Arizona, Sonora, and Chihuahua.

Perennial, Herbs, Taproot present, Nodules present, Stems erect or ascending, Stems less than 1 m tall, Plants gland-dotted or with gland-tipped hairs, Stems solid, Stems or young twigs glabrous or sparsely glabrate, Leaves alternate, Leaves petiolate, Stipules inconspicuous, absent, or caducous, Stipules setiform, subulate or acicular, Stipules deciduous, Stipules free, Leaves compound, Leaves odd pinnate, Leaf or leaflet margins entire, Leaflets opposite, Leaflets 10-many, Leaves glandular punctate or gland-dotted, Leaves glabrous or nearly so, Inflorescences spikes or spike-like, Inflorescence terminal, Bracts conspicuously present, Bracteoles present, Calyx 5-lobed, Calyx hairy, Petals separate, Corolla papilionaceous, Petals clawed, Petals blue, lavander to purple, or violet, Petals bicolored or with red, purple or yellow streaks or spots, Banner petal narrow or oblanceolate, Banner petal ovoid or obovate, Wing petals narrow, oblanceolate to oblong, Wing tips obtuse or rounded, Keel tips obtuse or rounded, not beaked, Stamens 9-10, Stamens monadelphous, united below, Filaments glabrous, Style terete, Fruit a le gume, Fruit unilocular, Fruit indehiscent, Fruit elongate, straight, Fruit oblong or ellipsoidal, Fruit enclosed in calyx, Fruit glabrous or glabrate, Fruit hairy, Fruit gland-dotted or with gland-tipped hairs, Fruit 1-seeded, Seeds reniform, Seeds cordiform, mit-shaped, notched at one end, Seed surface smooth, Seeds olive, brown, or black.