Dalea nana – Dwarf Prairie Clover

Dalea nana - Dwarf Prairie Clover, Dwarf Prairieclover, Dwarf Dalea (flowers)

Dalea nana - Dwarf Prairie Clover, Dwarf Prairieclover, Dwarf Dalea (leaves)

Plant Name

Scientific Name: Dalea nana

Common Names: Dwarf Prairie Clover, Dwarf Prairieclover, Dwarf Dalea

Plant Characteristics

Duration: Perennial

Growth Habit: Herb/Forb

Arizona Native Status: Native

Habitat: Upland

Flower Color: Golden yellow fading to orange

Flowering Season: Summer. This wildflower typically blooms after the summer monsoon rains have begun.

Height: To 8 inches (20 cm) tall

Description: The small, pea-like flowers are on dense, hairy, erect, egg-shaped flower spikes on short stems. The flowers are followed by feathery, reddish and white seedpods. The leaves are green, hairy above and below, alternate, and pinnate with 5 or sometimes 3 narrow leaflets. The stems are ascending and branched at the base.

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: Dalea L. – prairie clover
Species: Dalea nana Torr. ex A. Gray – dwarf prairie clover

More About This Plant

Arizona County Distribution Map