Flexile Milkvetch

Pisophaca flexuosa (Dougl.) Rydberg
Phaca flexuosa Hook. Fl. Bor. Am. 1: 141. 1831.
Astragalus flexuosus Dougl.; Hook. Fl. Bor. Am. 1: 141, as synonym. 1831.
Phaca Fendleri A. Gray, Mem. Am. Acad. II. 4: 36. 1849.
Astragalus Fendleri A. Gray, PI. Wright. 2: 44. 1853.
Tragacantha Fendleri Kuntze, Rev. Gen. 944. 1891.
Tragacantha flexuosa Kuntze, Rev. Gen. 945. 1891.
Astragalus flexuosus Fendleri M. E. Jones, Contr. W. Bot. 10: 62. 1902.
Homalobus flexuosus Rydb. Bull. Torrey Club 32: 666. 1906.
Homalobus Fendleri Rydb. Bull. Torrey Club 32: 667. 1906.
A perennial, with a branched rootstock; stems from erect to decumbent, branched, sometimes flexuose, strigose-canescent, leafy; lower stipules broadly deltoid, acuminate, connate, more or less scarious, the upper ones lanceolate, distinct, strigose; leaves 4-10 cm. long, spreading; leaflets 15-25, oblong or rarely obovate, acute at the base, obtuse to retuse at the apex, 5-18 mm. long, 1-4 mm. wide, strigose beneath, glabrous above; peduncles 5-10 cm. long; racemes about as long, lax; bracts subulate, 2 mm. long; calyx strigose, the tube 3 mm. long, the teeth deltoid-subulate less than 1 mm. long; corolla whitish or tinged with purple; banner obovate, 8-10 mm. long, tapering below into a broad claw, retuse at the apex; wings 7-8 mm. long, the blade lunate, acutish, a little longer than the claw, with a rounded apex and a large basal auricle; pod linear, terete, 1.5-2 cm. long, 3-4 mm. wide and thick, strigose, the stipe about 1 mm. long; seeds obliquely reniform, 2.5 mm. long.
Type locality: Red River, Manitoba.
Distribution: Manitoba to Alberta, New Mexico, and Kansas.

Pisophaca sierrae-blancae Rydberg, sp. nov
A perennial, with a cespitose caudex; stems branched, 4-6 dm. high, strigose, striate; stipules more or less connate, strigose, the lower ovate-deltoid, the upper deltoid-lanceolate, 4-6 mm. long; leaves 4-6 cm. long; leaflets 11-27, linear to linear-oblong, 5-10 mm. long, 1-3 mm. wide, glabrous above, strigose beneath; peduncles 5-10 cm. long; racemes 4-10 cm. long, lax; calyx strigose, the tube about 3 mm. long, the teeth nearly 1 mm. long; corolla whitish, about 9 mm. long ; banner 8-9 mm. long, obovate ; wings nearly as long, the blade lunate, acutish, onger than the claw, with an oblong reflexed basal auricle; keel-petals 6-7 mm. long, broadly lunate, with a rounded apex; pods linear-oblong, cylindric, 12-15 mm. long, about 3 mm. wide and thick, glabrous, the stipe scarcely 1 mm. long, much shorter than the calyx-tube.
Type collected in the White Mountains, Lincoln Countv, New Mexico, Julv 26, 1897, E. 0. Wooton 213 (herb. N. Y. Bot. Card.).
Distribution: White Mountains, New Mexico, and apparently also Elk Mountains, Utah.

Pisophaca ratonensis Rydberg, sp. nov
A perennial, with a woody root and cespitose caudex ; stems ascending or decumbent at the base, branched, 2-3 dm. high, grayish-strigose; leaves ascending, 3-5 cm. long, the rachis strigose; stipules lanceolate or deltoid, acuminate, 4-5 mm. long; leaflets 11-19, linear or oblong, or those of the lower leaves cuneate-obovate, 4-12 mm. long, 2-3 mm. wide, glabrous above, strigose-canescent beneath, obtuse to truncate or emarginate at the apex; peduncles 3-7 cm. long; racemes 2-5 cm. long, bracts lance-subulate, 2-3 mm. long; pedicels 1 mm. long; calyx strigose-canescent, the tube 3 mm. long, 2 mm. broad, the teeth lance-subulate, 1.5 mm. long; corolla dark-purple, only the claws paler, about 1 cm. long; banner broadly obovate, rather strongly arcuate at the middle; wings nearly as long, the blade oblong-oblanceolate, slightly falcate, obtuse, with a long reflexed auricle; keel-petals much shorter, the blade broadly lunate, strongly arched towards the rounded apex, with a smaller auricle; pod strigose, mottled with purple or brown, the stipe about 0.5 mm. long, the body oblong, acute at each end, 15-18 mm. long, 4 mm. wide, and nearly as thick, nearly round in cross-section.
Type collected at Des Moines, Union County, New Mexico, June 14, 1924, Eggleston 20114 (herb. N. Y. Bot. Card.).
Distribution: New Mexico.

Pisophaca saundersii Rydberg, sp. nov A cespitose perennial; stems decumbent at the base, 3-5 dm. high, branched, sparingly strigose, terete; leaves ascending, 6-10 cm. long; stipules broadly deltoid, 3-5 mm. long; leaflets 15-19, oblong or oblanceolate, 1-2 cm. long, 3-6 mm. wide, glabrate above, sparingly strigose beneath, rounded, truncate or retuse at the apex, cuneate at the base; peduncles 5—10 cm. long; racemes 3-6 cm. long, rather lax; bracts lance-subulate, 2-3 mm. long; pedicels 1 mm. long; calyx grayish-strigose, the tube 3 mm. long, 2 mm. broad, the teeth subulate, 1.5 mm. long; corolla apparently ochroleucous, about 8 mm. long; banner broadly obovate, abruptly arched at the middle; wings shorter, the blade oblanceolate, falcate, keel-petals shorter, the blade broadly lunate, rounded at the apex; pod stipitate, strigose, the stipe 1.5 mm. long, the body oblong, 12-15 mm. long, 5-6 mm. thick, membranous.
Type collected at Glenwood Springs, Colorado, June 11. 1S93, D. A. Saunders D (herb. Univ. Minn.j.

Pisophaca elongata (Hook.) Rydberg
Phaca elongata Hook. Fl. Bor. Am. 1: 140. 1831.
Astragalus flexuosits elongatus M. E. Jones, Contr. W. Bot. 10: 58. 1902.
A perennial, with branched rootstock; stem erect, 3-5 dm. high, grayish-canescent; lower stipules broadly deltoid, connate, the upper ones lanceolate, distinct; leaves 4—8 cm. long, spreading; leaflets 15-19, linear or those of the lower leaves oblong or oblanceolate, 5-15 mm. long, 1-2 mm. wide, strigose beneath, glabrous above; peduncles 5-10 cm. long; racemes 5-10 cm. long, lax; calyx strigose, the tube 3 mm. long, the lobes deltoid, slightly more than 0.5 mm. long; corolla whitish; banner obovate, with a broad claw, deeply notched; wings nearly as long, the blade lunate, acutish; keel-petals 6-7 mm. long, with a rounded apex; pod linear, 12-18 mm. long, 22.5 mm. wide and thick, usually somewhat curved upwards.
Type locality: Plains of the Saskatchewan.
Distribution: Saskatchewan to Alberta, Montana, and Minnesota.

Perennial, Herbs, Stems woody below, or from woody crown or caudex, Plants with rhizomes or suckers, Taproot present, Nodules present, Stems erect or ascending, Stems or branches arching, spreading or decumbent, Stems less than 1 m tall, Stems solid, Stems or young twigs sparsely to densely hairy, Stems hairs pilose or spreading, Leaves alternate, Leaves petiolate, Stipules conspicuous, Stipules green, triangulate to lanceolate or foliaceous, Stipules membranous or chartaceous, Stipules persistent, Stipules free, Stipules connate to each other, forming a tuber or sheath, Leaves compound, Leaves odd pinnate, Leaf or leaflet margins entire, Leaflets opposite, Leaflets 10-many, Leaves hairy on one or both surfaces, Inflorescences racemes, Inflorescence axillary, Inflorescence or flowers lax, declined or pendulous, Bracts very small, absent or caducous, Flowers zygomorphic, Calyx 5-lobed, Calyx hairy, Petals separate, Corolla papilionaceous, Petals clawed, Petals white, Petals pinkish to rose, Petals blue, lavander to purple, or violet, Petals bicolored or with red, purple or yellow streaks or spots, Banner petal narrow or oblanceolate, Wing petals narrow, oblanceolate to oblong, Wing tips obtuse or rounded, Keel petals auriculate, spurred, or gibbous, Keel tips obtuse or rounded, not beaked, Stamens 9-10, Stamens diadelphous, 9 united, 1 free, Filaments glabrous, Style terete, Style persistent in fruit, Fruit a legume, Fruit stipitate, Fruit unilocular, Fruit freely dehiscent, Fruit elongate, straight, Fruit oblong or ellipsoidal, Fruit rugose wrinkled or reticulate, Fruit exserted from calyx, Fruit inflated or turgid, Fruit beaked, Fruit glabrous or glabrate, Fruit hairy, Fruit 11-many seeded, Seeds cordiform, mit-shaped, notched at one end, Seed surface smooth, Seeds olive, brown, or black.