[Sickle Milk-vetch: Astragalus curvicarpus] [Milkvetches: The Genus Astragalus East of the Cascade Mountains of Oregon and Washington]

Sickle Milkvetch, Sickle Milk-vetch

Astragalus curvicarpus var. curvicarpus

Synonyms: Astragalus gibbsii, Astragalus speirocarpus, Astragalus whitedii, Astragalus whitedii var. whitedii

Sickle Milkvetch, Sickle Milk-vetch: Astragalus curvicarpus var. curvicarpus (Synonyms: Astragalus gibbsii, Astragalus speirocarpus, Astragalus whitedii, Astragalus whitedii var. whitedii)

Sickle milkvetch (var. curvicarpus) as seen at Silver Creek Marsh Campground, Fremont National Forest........May 20, 2016.
Leaf of Sickle Milkvetch, Sickle Milk-vetch: Astragalus curvicarpus var. curvicarpus (Synonyms: Astragalus gibbsii, Astragalus speirocarpus, Astragalus whitedii, Astragalus whitedii var. whitedii)The photo at right shows the leaf of sickle milk-vetch (var. curvicarpus) from Domingo Pass Rd, Pueblo Mts of Southeast, OR..........6/25/99.
Varieties of Sickle Milk-vetch:

variety brachycodon - Ovary and mature pod glabrous. Calyx 6-8.5 mm long. Banner 13.5-15.5 mm long. Keel 9.5-11.5 mm long. leaflets pubescent on the upper surfaces. Found on the upper reaches of the Deschutes River from about 20 miles NE of Madras, OR south into Jefferson, Crook and Deschutes Counties.

variety curvicarpus - Ovary and mature pod pubescent. Banner 16-20 mm long. Keel 12-15 mm long. Upper surface of leaflets pubescent (See photo below.). Found from the southwestern edge of the Blue Mts. of Oregon south to Klamath Falls, OR and east across Lake County to Malheur and Harney Counties and east into the Snake River Plains of southern Idaho and south to California and Nevada.

variety subglaber - Ovary and mature pod glabrous. Calyx 9-13.5 mm long. Banner 13.9-19.5 mm long. Keel 11.5-14.5 mm long. Leaflets nearly glabrous. Found near the lower reaches of the Deschutes and John Day Rivers of Grant and Wasco Counties south to northern Jefferson County.

Raceme of Sickle Milkvetch, Sickle Milk-vetch: Astragalus curvicarpus var. curvicarpus (Synonyms: Astragalus gibbsii, Astragalus speirocarpus, Astragalus whitedii, Astragalus whitedii var. whitedii) - Sickle Milkvetch, Sickle Milk-vetch: Astragalus curvicarpus var. curvicarpus (Synonyms: Astragalus gibbsii, Astragalus speirocarpus, Astragalus whitedii, Astragalus whitedii var. whitedii) - Flowers of Sickle Milkvetch, Sickle Milk-vetch: Astragalus curvicarpus var. curvicarpus (Synonyms: Astragalus gibbsii, Astragalus speirocarpus, Astragalus whitedii, Astragalus whitedii var. whitedii)

Sickle milkvetch (var. curvicarpus) as seen at Silver Creek Marsh Campground, Fremont National Forest........May 20, 2016.

Curved fruits of Sickle Milkvetch, Sickle Milk-vetch: Astragalus curvicarpus var. curvicarpus (Synonyms: Astragalus gibbsii, Astragalus speirocarpus, Astragalus whitedii, Astragalus whitedii var. whitedii) - Sickle Milkvetch, Sickle Milk-vetch: Astragalus curvicarpus var. curvicarpus (Synonyms: Astragalus gibbsii, Astragalus speirocarpus, Astragalus whitedii, Astragalus whitedii var. whitedii) - Inflorescence of Sickle Milkvetch, Sickle Milk-vetch: Astragalus curvicarpus var. curvicarpus (Synonyms: Astragalus gibbsii, Astragalus speirocarpus, Astragalus whitedii, Astragalus whitedii var. whitedii)

Sickle milkvetch as seen on the east-facing slopes of the Hart Mt. ridgeline west of Hot Springs Campground, Hart Mt. National Antelope Refuge.........June 9, 2016.

Pod of Sickle Milkvetch, Sickle Milk-vetch: Astragalus curvicarpus var. curvicarpus (Synonyms: Astragalus gibbsii, Astragalus speirocarpus, Astragalus whitedii, Astragalus whitedii var. whitedii)

The photo above shows a pod of sickle milk-vetch (variety curvicarpus) as seen at Blue Mt. Pass on US Highway 95 in extreme southeastern Oregon.........June 26, 1999. The pods may be fishhook in appearance or fully coiled like the picture below. The pubescence present on this variety of sickle milk-vetch is not evident in this photo.

Pod of Sickle Milkvetch, Sickle Milk-vetch: Astragalus curvicarpus var. curvicarpus (Synonyms: Astragalus gibbsii, Astragalus speirocarpus, Astragalus whitedii, Astragalus whitedii var. whitedii)

Photo of the pods of sickle milkvetch (Astragalus curvicarpus var. curvicarpus) near Domingo Pass, Pueblo Mts......6/25/99.

Sickle Milkvetch, Sickle Milk-vetch: Astragalus curvicarpus var. curvicarpus (Synonyms: Astragalus gibbsii, Astragalus speirocarpus, Astragalus whitedii, Astragalus whitedii var. whitedii)

The photo above shows a stem of sickle milk-vetch (variety curvicarpus) as seen at Blue Mt. Pass on US Highway 95 in extreme southeastern Oregon.........June 26, 1999.

Sickle Milkvetch, Sickle Milk-vetch: Astragalus curvicarpus var. curvicarpus (Synonyms: Astragalus gibbsii, Astragalus speirocarpus, Astragalus whitedii, Astragalus whitedii var. whitedii)

The photo above shows the raceme of sickle milk-vetch (var. curvicarpus) near Summer Lake, Or......June, 1995.
Paul Slichter