Family: Fabaceae, Pea
Genus: Astragalus

Description
General: perennial 10-40 cm tall, greenish to rather grayish
with short, flat, stiff, T-shaped hairs, stems often several
from the base.
Leaves: alternate, about 4-12 cm long, the 9-23 leaflets
narrowly oblong to oblong-obovate, 1-2.5 cm long, 3-10 mm
broad. Stipules membranous, broadly lanceolate, joined
around stem, 5-15 mm long.
Flowers: about 15-80 in oblong, congested, spike-like
clusters on main stalks about equaling or up to twice as
long as the leaves. Individual flower stalks about 1 mm long.
Flowers erect, white or pale purplish to fairly dark purple,
14-18 mm long. Calyx 5-9 mm long, the narrow teeth from
about 1/3 as long to nearly as long as the tube, whitish- or
blackish-flat-hairy. Banner only slightly bent up, 1-3 mm
longer than the wings. Wings 2-3 mm longer than the keel.
Flowering time: June-August.
Fruits: pods, stalkless, erect, membranous, 8-12 mm
long and 3-4 mm thick and broad, with short, flat, base-
attached hairs, heart-shaped in section, the lower seam as
a broad groove, intruded as a narrow membrane 2/3-3/4 the
width of the pod.

Distribution
Prairie grassland to rocky foothills, in most parts of MT.
Also from c. WA to Alberta and MN, s. to NM.

Medicinal and Toxic plant: see below.