Lotus formosissimus
Encyclopedia
Lotus formosissimus is a species of legume
Faboideae
Faboideae is a subfamily of the flowering plant family Fabaceae or Leguminosae. One acceptable alternative name for the subfamily is Papilionoideae....

 known by the common name seaside bird's-foot trefoil. It is native to western North America from British Columbia
British Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...

 to California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...

, where it grows in moist spots in the coastal mountains and down to the oceanside bluffs. It is a perennial herb growing upright or spreading to about half a meter in maximum length. It is lined with leaves each made up of a few oppositely arranged oval leaflets up to 2 centimeters long. The inflorescence
Inflorescence
An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Strictly, it is the part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed and which is accordingly modified...

 is made up of several pealike flowers each 1 to 2 centimeters long. The flower has a bright yellow banner, or upper petal, and bright pink or white lower petals. The fruit is a legume pod 2 or 3 centimeters long.

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