Lotus humistratus – Foothill Deervetch

Lotus humistratus - Foothill Deervetch, Hairy Deer Vetch, Foothill Bird's-foot Trefoil

Lotus humistratus - Foothill Deervetch, Hairy Deer Vetch, Foothill Bird's-foot Trefoil

Plant Name

Scientific Name: Lotus humistratus

Synonym: Hosackia brachycarpa

Common Names: Foothill Deervetch, Hairy Deer Vetch, Foothill Bird's-foot Trefoil

Plant Characteristics

Duration: Annual

Growth Habit: Herb/Forb

Arizona Native Status: Native

Habitat: Desert. In years with sufficient winter rains, this tiny wildflower is common on rocky slopes and flats in the foothills.

Flower Color: Yellow with orange tinting

Flowering Season: Spring

Height: To only 1 inch (2.5 cm) tall

Description: The flowers are tiny and pea-like with orange on the back of the banner petals. The leaves are green, covered in soft, spreading, white hairs, and subpinnate or palmate with typically 4, oval, point-tipped leaflets. The plants are low-growing and mat-forming.

The similar Strigose Bird's-Foot Trefoil (Lotus strigosus var. tomentellus) is also mat-forming, but it has thickened, partly folded leaves.

Classification

Kingdom: Plantae – Plants
Subkingdom: Tracheobionta – Vascular plants
Superdivision: Spermatophyta – Seed plants
Division: Magnoliophyta – Flowering plants
Class: Magnoliopsida – Dicotyledons
Subclass: Rosidae
Order: Fabales
Family: Fabaceae – Pea family
Genus: Lotus L. – trefoil
Species: Lotus humistratus Greene – foothill deervetch

More About This Plant

Arizona County Distribution Map