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Oxytropis splendens
Also called Showy Crazyweed, Showy Oxytrope
Showy locoweed is a native perennial legume of the Rocky Mountain east slope, Great Plains and subarctic regions, forming tufts of silvery stems topped with lavender flower spikes. It is a hardy wild plant of gravelly, disturbed ground rather than a garden or houseplant.
Oxytropis splendens, commonly known as showy locoweed, is a flowering perennial in the legume family endemic to the east slope of the Rocky Mountains. Growing in Canada, Alaska, several Great Plains states, and parts of the Mountain West, O. splendens grows well in harsh alpine ecosystems, allowing it to quickly colonize gravel and coal spoils.
It is potentially toxic, as it contains toxic alkaloids and takes up selenium.
Widely distributed in the mountains and foothills in Alberta. Alaska, Yukon, District of Mackenzie, to Lake Superior, south to southeastern British Columbia, New Mexico, North Dakota, northern Minnesota, and Colorado. It favors grassy slopes, open woods, clearings, gravelly river flats, banks, and roadsides. O. splendens is an early colonizer of disturbed gravel areas and unamended coal spoils. Its nitrogen fixing properties and quick colonizing of poor soils make it a favorable plant for revegetation.
Field locoweed · Oxytropis kozhuharovii · Purple locoweed · Hairy Oxytrope · Stalkpod locoweed · Oxytropis prenja · White locoweed · Oxytropis sobolevskajae · Oxytropis sordida · Oxytropis urumovii · Locoweed
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Oxytropis splendens by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.
The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
Pet safety from the ASPCA toxic and non-toxic plant lists.
