(Fabaceae)
Purple to pink flowers with white just barely ascending above dark green leaflets that with their hairs, appear silver. The plant itself it also marked with reddish accents on the edges of stems and leaves. The seed pods are unassuming but the plant makes up for it with long seasonal interest and large tufts of soft foliage.
Growing in deep rocky soil within sage-steppe and the edges of Aspen forest and Ponderosa/Lodgepole forest. Open, rocky, hillsides and flats. Growing with several Artemisia, several Castilleja, Rock Goldenrod, several erigeron, Ipomopsis tenuituba, and Antelope Bitterbrush. This collection is from Summit county around 8,500 ft. Close by to the Woolypod Milkvetch I have for sale.
This variety is an obligate xerophyte meaning it's needs dry and fast draining soil. An extremely drought tolerant species and still looks awesome late into the season, when Woolypod, Utah, Browse and other milkvetches have wilted or faded.
Collected In: Summit County, Utah
Wild or Homegrown: Wild
Seasonality: May- early June
Germination: Scarify with fine to medium grit sandpaper then sow 1/8-1/4 inch deep and cover with a thin layer of sand. 30 days of cool-moist(37-41°) stratification after scarifying will help germination but you need to monitor the seeds for early germination. I prefer to not stratify. Damping off is common with Astragalus; do not overwater and use humidity domes to reduce the need to water the seedlings.
