Depauperate milkvetch facts for kids

Astragalus pauperculus, also known as the depauperate milkvetch, is a special kind of plant. It's a type of milkvetch, which belongs to the pea family. This plant is quite rare and doesn't grow in many places.

It's found only in northern California, making it a unique plant for that area. You can find it in the northern Sacramento Valley and the lower parts of the Cascade foothills. This means it's a native Californian plant!

Where It Lives

Its Special Homes

This small plant likes to grow in specific places. It thrives in areas called chaparral. Chaparral is a type of shrubland with tough, woody plants that can handle dry summers.

It also likes "vernally wet grassland" habitats. This means grasslands that get wet during the spring (when "vernal" means spring) but might dry out later in the year. These unique conditions are perfect for the depauperate milkvetch.

What It Looks Like

A Tiny, Delicate Plant

The depauperate milkvetch is a very small plant. It's an annual, which means it completes its whole life cycle in just one year. It grows in a delicate, flat mat close to the ground. Its stems are usually no longer than 10 centimeters (about 4 inches). That's shorter than a pencil!

Leaves, Flowers, and Fruit

Its leaves are only a few centimeters long. They are made up of small, widely spaced leaflets. Imagine tiny green pieces spread out along a stem.

When it blooms, the plant produces two to seven flowers. These flowers are usually purple. Sometimes, the edges of their petals might be a lighter color, making them look even prettier. Each flower is quite small, usually less than 1 centimeter (less than half an inch) long.

After the flowers bloom, they turn into fruit. The fruit is a pod, like a tiny pea pod, called a legume. These pods are shaped like a crescent moon and are between 1 and 2 centimeters long. They hold the seeds for the next generation of plants.