Silktop Dalea (Dalea aurea)

JULY-AUGUST

Silktop Dalea Dalea aurea Nutt. (PEA FAMILY)

Silktop dalea is a perennial l-2 ft tall with a strong taproot and a scant-leaved upright stem. The plant is clad throughout with short, appressed, silky hairs, making it grayish- to whitish-green in appearance. The alternate leaves are pinnately compound with 5 to 9 obovate leaflets. The inflorescence is a dense terminal spike of yellow pea flowers. The legume is usually 1-seeded, remaining enclosed in a persistent calyx.