Plant Database

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Plant Characteristics

Duration: Perennial
Habit: Herb , Subshrub , Shrub
Leaf Arrangement: Alternate
Fruit Type: Legume
Size Notes: "(2) 4-20, rarely 35 dm tall." (bibref: 1812).
Leaf: "Petioles short: rhachis sparingly glandular, and usually with a pair of larger glands at the insertion of the leaflets. Leaflets commonly 11 or 13, thickish, 3 lines long, remarkably silvery and shining, especially above, with a close and fine silky pubescence." (reslit 2889). "Leaf-spurs 0.3-1.5 mm long; stipules narrowly triangular to subulate or linear-setiform, livid, either pubescent or glabrous, (0.5) 1-4.5 mm long; intra- and post-petiolular glands always present, often conspicuous; leaves shortiy petioled, the primary cauline ones (0.6) 1-3.5 (4.5) cm long, with narrowly margined rachis and (1) 2-10 (11) pairs of obovate, oblong-elliptic, oblanceolate, obovate- or cuneate-obcordate, obtuse, retuse, or bluntly gland-mucronate, dorsally punctate leaflets (1.5) 2-9.5 mm long, the last pair arising at same point to form a palmate trefoil." (bibref: 1812).
Flower: "Peduncles 0-4 (5) cm long; spikes usually loose, with calyces subcontiguous or well separated, but sometimes closely contiguous, in Baja California sometimes extremely dense and almost conelike, without petals or androecia (4.5) 5.5-15 mm diam, the villosulous axis becoming (0.5) 1-20 (23) cm long; bracts rather tardily deciduous or, especially when small and low on the spike (or both) persistent through and even after anthesis, in dense spikes sometimes deciduous but held fast between the flowers, rhombic-ovate to broadly ovate, ovate-acuminate, lanceolate-caudate, or sometimes narrowed downward from near or above middle and then oblanceolate, 1-5.5 (6) mm long, dorsally puberulent to densely pilose, livid and glandular beneath the vesture, the tips often glabrate, usually appressedpilosulous or at least pubemlent internally, in var. orcuttiana sometimes internally glabrous; calyx 2.5-5.6 (6.8) mm long, variably pubescent, the tube often yellow or castaneous, 1.6-3.2 mm long, the ribs thickened and usually prominent, the intervals charged with 1 row of 2-3 (4) glands, the deltate-ovate to triangular-apiculate or -acuminulate, often gland-spurred teeth unequal, the dorsal one nearly always a trifle, often much longer than the rest, 0.5-2.9 (3.8) mm long, with rare exceptions shorter than the tube; petals bicolored, the banner opening white or creamy yellow, early rubescent, the epistemonous ones rose-purple, phlox-purple, lilac, violet, or vivid cobalt blue, perched well below middle of androecium, usually all glandless but the banner or keel (or both) rarely tipped with a minute gland; banner 3.2-1.5 (8) mm long, the claw 1.4-3.4 (4) mm, the deltate-cordate blade (2.2) 2.8-4.8 (5.8) mm long, 2.4-5.2 mm wide; wings 3.4-1.5 mm long, the claw 0.8-2.7 mm, the broadly lance-oblong to ovate-elliptic blade 3.6-5.5 mm long, 1.8-3 mm wide; keel 5-10 mm long, the claw 1.2-3.6 (4) mm, the ovate-elliptic blades 3.6-7 mm long, 2.1-4.4 mm wide; androecium 10-merous, 5.6-10.5 (12) mm long, the filaments free for (1.7) 2-4 mm, the connective gland-tipped, the anthers 0.65-1 mm long." (bibref: 1812).
Fruit: "Pod 2.2-2.7 mm long, variable in outline, in profile obovate to triangular, the ventral side as long or longer than the others, the slender prow convex or straight, the style-base excentrically terminal or latero-terminal, the valves thinly papery above the hyaline base, sparsely gland-dotted, distally pilosulous or rarely glabrous." (bibref: 1812).

Bloom Information

Bloom Color: White , Red , Pink , Yellow , Blue , Purple , Violet
Bloom Time: Jan , Jun , Jul , Aug , Sep , Oct , Nov , Dec
Bloom Notes: "Petals bicolored, the banner opening white or creamy yellow, early rubescent, the epistemonous ones rose-purple, phlox-purple, lilac, violet, or vivid cobalt blue." (bibref: 1812).

Distribution

USA: AZ , NM , TX
Native Distribution: "Strongly but not obligately calciphile, west Texas (northwest from mouth of Devils River, Val Verde to Culberson County) and immediately adjoining southeastern New Mexico south through detached ranges in Coahuila to the northern Sierra Madre Oriental in Nuevo Leon and adjoining Tamaulipas, extending south to or slightly beyond the Tropic of Cancer." (bibref: 1812).
Native Habitat: "Open stony hills and benches of canyons, ascending (southward) into the oak-belt, locally plentiful, sometimes forming thickets, 450-2070 m." (bibref: 1812).

Benefit

Use Wildlife: Bees
Conspicuous Flowers: yes
Nectar Source: yes

Bibliography

Bibref 1812 - Daleae imagines : an illustrated revision of Errazurizia Philippi, Psorothamnus Rydberg, Marina Leibmann, and Dalea Lucanus emend. Barneby, including all species of Leguminosae tribe Amorpheae Borissova ever referred to Dalea (1977) Barneby, Rupert C.

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Additional resources

USDA: Find Dalea bicolor in USDA Plants
FNA: Find Dalea bicolor in the Flora of North America (if available)
Google: Search Google for Dalea bicolor