Vor. II.] PEA FAMILY. 307 
2. Orophaca sericea (Nutt.) Britton. Hoary Milk Vetch. (Fig. 2155.) 
Phaca sericea Nutt.; T. & G. Fl. N. A. 1: 343. 1838. 
Astragalus sericoleucus A, Gray, Am. Journ. Sci- 
(II.) 33: 410. 1862. 
Villous-pubescent, densely tufted, and spread- 
ing on the ground from a deep root, the stems 
3-4’ long. Leaves short-petioled, 3-foliolate; 
leaflets oblong or oblanceolate, acute or obtus- 
ish at the apex, narrowed or cuneate at the 
base, 2’’-5’’ long; peduncles slender, 2-6-flow- 
ered, equalling or exceeding the leaves; flowers 
bluish-purple, about 3’ long; pod 1-celled, ses- 
sile, ovoid-oblong, coriaceous, acute, villous- 
pubescent, about 3’’ long, partly enclosed by 
the calyx. 
In dry, sandy or rocky places, Nebraska and Col- 
orado. May-July. 
2. SPIESIA Neck. Elem. Euless rojo}. 
[OxytRopis DC. Astrag. 19. 1802.] 
Herbs, sometimes shrubby, and mostly acaulescent, with odd-pinnate leaves, and race- 
mose or spicate flowers. Calyx-teeth nearly equal. Petals clawed; standard erect, ovate or 
oblong; wings oblong; keel erect, shorter than or equalling the wings, its apex mucronate, 
acuminate or appendaged; stamens diadelphous; anthers all alike; style filiform. Pod ses- 
sile or stipitate, 2-valved, 1-celled, or more or less 2-celled by the intrusion of the ventral 
suture. [In honor of Johann Karl Spies, a German botanist. ] 
About 120 species, natives of the north temperate zone. In addition to the following, some 11 
others occur in the western and northwestern parts of North America. 
Leaves simply pinnate. 
Plants 1’-4' high; heads few-flowered. 
Pod membranous, pubescent, much inflated, 1-celled. 1. S. ¢nflata. 
Pod coriaceous, ovoid, little inflated, pubescent, partly 2-celled. 
Calyx gray-pubescent; leaflets 7-9, oblong. 2. S. multiceps. 
Calyx dark-pubescent; leaflets 7-21, linear. 3. S. arctica. 
Plants 6’-18' high; heads or spike-like racemes many-flowered. 
Sparingly pubescent; flowers 8’’-o'’ long; pods papery. 4. S. campestris. 
Silky-pubescent; flowers 9'’-15'’ long; pods coriaceous. 5. S. Lamberti. 
Leaves pinnate, the leaflets verticillate. 
Pod scarcely longer than the calyx, its tip spreading. 6. S. splendens. 
Pod 2-3 times as long as the calyx, its tip erect. WSs) DELLZ. 
1. Spiesia inflata (Hook. ) Britton. Inflated 
Oxytrope. (Fig. 2156.) 
Oxytropis arctica var. inflata Hook. Fl. Bor. Am. 1: 
146. 1833. 
Oxytropis podocarpa A. Gray, Proc. Am. Acad. 6: 234. 
1864. 
Spiesia inflata Britton, Mem. Torr. Club, 5: 201. 1894. 
Acaulescent or nearly so, more or less villous-pu- 
bescent, much tufted, 1/-4’ high. Stipules mem- 
branous, imbricated, adnate to the petiole, lanceolate, 
about 2’ long; leaves pinnate; leaflets 9-21, linear, 
2//-4// long, about %’’ wide, obtuse or obtusish; pe- 
duncles 1-2-flowered, scarcely exceeding the leaves; 
flowers violet, 7/”-8’’ long; calyx densely dark-pu- 
bescent; pod membranous, much inflated, r-celled, 
ovoid, pubescent, short-stalked or sessile in the 
calyx, about 9’’ long, pointed; ventral-suture slightly 
intruded. 
Arctic and alpine; Labrador and arctic America, south 
in the Rocky Mountains to Colorado. Summer. 
