General:
Perennial herb from a taproot and branching stem-base; stems several, clumped, spreading to erect, 10-50 cm tall, often branched, leafless on lower part, with fine, soft, curly, unbranched hairs.
Leaves:
Alternate, pinnately compound, 3-9 cm long, short-stalked; leaflets 11 to 21, oblanceolate to oblong, often notched at the tip, 8-20 mm long; stipules lanceolate, 2-5 mm long, not joined.
Flowers:
Inflorescence an axillary raceme of 15 to 40 nodding, pea-like flowers, the racemes compact at first then elongating, 4-12 cm long on stalks that are longer than the leaves; corollas creamy-white to yellowish with greenish tinges, 13-17 mm long, the stubby banner shorter than the wings, which barely exceed the blunt keel; calyces 7-10 mm long, downy with white and black hairs, the tube bulging on one side at the base, the lance-triangular teeth 1-3 mm long.
Fruits:
Pods, lance-oblong, drooping on stalks 5-15 mm long, straight or gently curved, 7-25 mm long, laterally flattened, with short, soft or appressed hairs, somewhat fleshy becoming leathery and net-veined, 1-chambered.
If more than one illustration is available for a species (e.g., separate illustrations were provided for two subspecies) then links to the separate images will be provided below. Note that individual subspecies or varietal illustrations are not always available.
Illustration Source: The Illustrated Flora of British Columbia