''Hosackia crassifolia'',

synonym A synonym is a word, morpheme, or phrase that means exactly or nearly the same as another word, morpheme, or phrase in a given language. For example, in the English language, the words ''begin'', ''start'', ''commence'', and ''initiate'' are all ...

''Lotus crassifolius'', is a species of

legume A legume () is a plant in the family Fabaceae (or Leguminosae), or the fruit or seed of such a plant. When used as a dry grain, the seed is also called a pulse. Legumes are grown agriculturally, primarily for human consumption, for livestock f ...

native to

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered on ...

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

and

Oregon Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...

. It is known by the common names big deervetch and broad-leafed lotus.

Distribution

The plant is native to western North America, in

, and

(U.S. states); and into

Baja California Baja California (; 'Lower California'), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Baja California ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Baja California), is a state in Mexico. It is the northernmost and westernmost of the 32 federal entities of Mex ...

(Méxican state). The

populations are found in diverse habitats, including

chaparral Chaparral ( ) is a shrubland plant community and geographical feature found primarily in the U.S. state of California, in southern Oregon, and in the northern portion of the Baja California Peninsula in Mexico. It is shaped by a Mediterranean c ...

, California oak woodland,

California mixed evergreen forest : California mixed evergreen forest is a plant community found in the mountain ranges of California and southwestern Oregon. The Mixed evergreen forest plant community is native to the Northern and Southern California Coast Ranges and Sierra Nev ...

, and

conifer forest A forest is an area of land dominated by trees. Hundreds of definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing, and ecological function. The United Nations' ...

Description

''Hosackia crassifolia'' is a long-lived, somewhat bushy plant which bears long straight stems with evenly spaced oval-shaped leaves. It produces thick bunches of yellow, pink-and-yellow, or scarlet-and-yellow pea flowers. The bloom period is May to August. The brownish pea pods contain speckled red or brown peas.

Varieties

*''Hosackia crassifolia'' var. ''crassifolia'' — broad-leafed lotus (formerly ''Lotus crassifolius'' var. ''crassifolius''). *''Hosackia crassifolia'' var. ''otayensis'' — Otay Mountain lotus, Otay Mountain hosackia (formerly ''Lotus crassifolius'' var. ''otayensis''),

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...

Otay Mountain Otay Mountain is a mountain located in San Diego County, California. It is the highest summit of the San Ysidro Mountains. The mountain is located in the Otay Mountain Wilderness Area. The physical border separating Mexico and the United Stat ...

in the

San Ysidro Mountains The San Ysidro Mountains are a mountain range in southern San Diego County, California and Baja California, Mexico. The mountains are a rugged coastal foothill range of the Peninsular Ranges system. Major peaks include the highest summit of the r ...

San Diego County, California San Diego County (), officially the County of San Diego, is a county in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 3,298,634, making it California's second-most populous county and the fi ...

. It is a critically endangered species. California Native Plant Society
Inventory of Rare and Endangered Plants (online edition, v8-02): report for ''Hosackia crassifolia'' var. ''otayensis''
. accessed 12 June 2016.

References

External links

Calflora: ''Hosackia crassifolia'' (Broad leaved lotus)
— ''formerly Lotus crassifolius''.
Jepson Manual eFlora (YJM2) treatment of ''Hosackia crassifolia''
— ''formerly Lotus crassifolius''.
USDA Plants Profile for ''Lotus crassifolius'' (big deervetch)UC Photos gallery of ''Hosackia crassifolia''
— ''formerly Lotus crassifolius''. {{Taxonbar, from1=Q15537676, from2=Q6685231, from3= crassifolia Flora of California Flora of Baja California Flora of Oregon Flora of Washington (state) Flora of the Cascade Range Flora of the Klamath Mountains Flora of the Sierra Nevada (United States) Natural history of the California chaparral and woodlands Natural history of the California Coast Ranges Natural history of the Peninsular Ranges Natural history of the Transverse Ranges San Ysidro Mountains Taxa named by George Bentham Flora without expected TNC conservation status