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Photographer: Merel R. Black
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Family Fabaceae
Lespedeza leptostachya Engelm.
prairie bush-clover, prairie lespedeza
Lespedeza: after Cespedez, Spanish governor of east Flordia in late 18th century
leptostachya: leptos for "thin;" stachya for "spike;" hence Latin for "slender-spiked"
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| Status: | Endangered (Federally Threatened) |
| Plant: | erect to drooping, perennial, 20"-40" tall forb with silky hairs, usually unbranched |
| Flower: | cream to pinkish, 5-parted, 1/4" long; inflorescence a thin, sparse spike often of separated clusters of stalkless flowers; blooms July-Aug. |
| Fruit: | with very fine, dense hairs |
| Leaf: | 3-parted with narrow, linear leaflets |
| Habitat: | dry; prairies |
| (Glossary) |
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