Delphinium glaucum
Encyclopedia
Delphinium glaucum is a species of larkspur
known by the common names Sierra larkspur, mountain larkspur, and glaucous larkspur. This wildflower is native to western North America from Arizona
to Alaska
. It grows in moist mountainous environments, such as riverbanks and meadows. This plant sprouts one to several tall, stout, pale green erect stems which may approach three meters in height. The lobed leaves are generally found only at the base of the plant. The top of the stem is a large inflorescence
which may itself be over a meter long. It usually contains over fifty widely spaced flowers, with each flower on a pedicel
a few centimeters long. The sepal
s are flat and extend to the sides or point forward. The sepals and petals are dark blue to deep purple, although the top two petals may be lighter in color to almost white. They may be somewhat wrinkly. The spur is about two centimeters long.
Delphinium
Delphinium is a genus of about 300 species of perennial flowering plants in the buttercup family Ranunculaceae, native throughout the Northern Hemisphere and also on the high mountains of tropical Africa. The common name, larkspur, is shared with the closely related genus Consolida...
known by the common names Sierra larkspur, mountain larkspur, and glaucous larkspur. This wildflower is native to western North America from Arizona
Arizona
Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...
to Alaska
Alaska
Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...
. It grows in moist mountainous environments, such as riverbanks and meadows. This plant sprouts one to several tall, stout, pale green erect stems which may approach three meters in height. The lobed leaves are generally found only at the base of the plant. The top of the stem is a large inflorescence
Inflorescence
An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Strictly, it is the part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed and which is accordingly modified...
which may itself be over a meter long. It usually contains over fifty widely spaced flowers, with each flower on a pedicel
Pedicel (botany)
A pedicel is a stem that attaches single flowers to the main stem of the inflorescence. It is the branches or stalks that hold each flower in an inflorescence that contains more than one flower....
a few centimeters long. The sepal
Sepal
A sepal is a part of the flower of angiosperms . Collectively the sepals form the calyx, which is the outermost whorl of parts that form a flower. Usually green, sepals have the typical function of protecting the petals when the flower is in bud...
s are flat and extend to the sides or point forward. The sepals and petals are dark blue to deep purple, although the top two petals may be lighter in color to almost white. They may be somewhat wrinkly. The spur is about two centimeters long.