Common Names
provided by Fire Effects Information System Plants
More info for the terms:
forb,
naturalwhite locoweed
crazyweed
silky crazyweed
whitepoint crazyweed
whitepoint locoweed
TAXONOMY:
The scientific name for white locoweed is Oxytropis sericea Nutt. [
40].
Recognized varieties and natural hybrids are as follows:
Oxytropis sericea var. sericea [
11,
14,
40]--This variety hybridizes with
O. lambertii (Lambert crazyweed) in the western Great Plains, Rocky Mountain
foothills, and Colorado [
40].
Oxytropis sericea var. speciosa (Torr. & A. Gray) S.L. Welsh [
40].
LIFE FORM:
Forb
FEDERAL LEGAL STATUS:
No special status
OTHER STATUS:
NO-ENTRY
DISTRIBUTION AND OCCURRENCE
SPECIES: Oxytropis sericea
GENERAL DISTRIBUTION:
White locoweed occurs from the Yukon Territory east to Manitoba and
south to Nevada, New Mexico, and Texas [
42]. It is commonly found in
the Great Plains, throughout the Rocky Mountains, and in the Pacific
Northwest [
11,
37].
- bibliographic citation
- Esser, Lora L. 1993. Oxytropis sericea. In: Fire Effects Information System, [Online]. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory (Producer). Available: http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/
Distribution
provided by Fire Effects Information System Plants
White locoweed occurs from the Yukon Territory east to Manitoba and
south to Nevada, New Mexico, and Texas [
42]. It is commonly found in
the Great Plains, throughout the Rocky Mountains, and in the Pacific
Northwest [
11,
37].
Distribution of white locoweed. Map courtesy of USDA, NRCS. 2018. The
PLANTS Database.
National Plant Data Team, Greensboro, NC [2018, June 1] [
37].
- bibliographic citation
- Esser, Lora L. 1993. Oxytropis sericea. In: Fire Effects Information System, [Online]. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory (Producer). Available: http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/
Fire Management Considerations
provided by Fire Effects Information System Plants
No information was available on this topic.
- bibliographic citation
- Esser, Lora L. 1993. Oxytropis sericea. In: Fire Effects Information System, [Online]. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory (Producer). Available: http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/
Life Form
provided by Fire Effects Information System Plants
More info for the term:
forbForb
- bibliographic citation
- Esser, Lora L. 1993. Oxytropis sericea. In: Fire Effects Information System, [Online]. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory (Producer). Available: http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/
Management considerations
provided by Fire Effects Information System Plants
More info for the terms:
forest,
treeLocoweed poisoning of livestock is the most widespread poisonous plant
problem in the western United States [
26]. White locoweed
increases in abundance in response to excessive grazing [
16]. When
there is a shortage of palatable, nonpoisonous forage, animals will
consume more locoweed [
34]. Eradication of white locoweed over
large areas is seldom possible. Vegetation manipulation should be
integrated with livestock management programs that minimize the intake
of white locoweed [
16]. Aversive conditioning of livestock to
avoid white locoweed may be effective in reducing livestock losses
[
29]. A three-herd, four-pasture rotation system that involves grazing
animals for 6 weeks to 2 months in July and August has reduced the risk
of white locoweed intoxication in the Raft River Mountains of Utah
[
31].
Selective herbicide control may be necessary to reduce white
locoweed [
29]. Picloram, dicamba, and 2,4-D are effective on white
locoweed if sprayed when plants are actively growing in early summer
before they reach the bud stage [
43]. An ester of 2,4-D was sprayed on
white locoweed on a rangeland in northwest Utah in 1969.
White locoweed established to pretreatment levels by 1978 [
26].
When aerially sprayed with 2,4-D in 1981, all plants were killed on
deeper soils, but some remained on shallower soils [
26].
White locoweed fixes atmospheric nitrogen. It has potential to add
significant amounts of nitrogen to forest sites in the Inland Northwest
because of its nitrogen-fixing ability [
13]. However, white
locoweed seedlings compete with conifer tree seedlings on many sites
[
13].
- bibliographic citation
- Esser, Lora L. 1993. Oxytropis sericea. In: Fire Effects Information System, [Online]. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory (Producer). Available: http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/
Phenology
provided by Fire Effects Information System Plants
More info on this topic. More info for the term:
seedWhite locoweed is one of the first species to commence growth in
early spring on many western rangelands. Growth begins in early April
and plants remain green and succulent throughout the summer [
2,
28].
First bloom for white locoweed occurs in mid-June to early July.
Seed dissemination begins in mid-July and lasts until mid-August [
22].
The plant begins to dry in late September.
Some reported dates for anthesis in some western states are as follows
[
3]:
Utah May-July
Colorado May-August
Wyoming March-August
Montana May-August
- bibliographic citation
- Esser, Lora L. 1993. Oxytropis sericea. In: Fire Effects Information System, [Online]. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory (Producer). Available: http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/
Post-fire Regeneration
provided by Fire Effects Information System Plants
Initial-offsite colonizer (off-site, initial community)
- bibliographic citation
- Esser, Lora L. 1993. Oxytropis sericea. In: Fire Effects Information System, [Online]. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory (Producer). Available: http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/
Taxonomy
provided by Fire Effects Information System Plants
More info for the term:
naturalThe scientific name for white locoweed is Oxytropis sericea Nutt. [
40].
Recognized varieties and natural hybrids are as follows:
Oxytropis sericea var. sericea [
11,
14,
40]--This variety hybridizes with
O. lambertii (Lambert crazyweed) in the western Great Plains, Rocky Mountain
foothills, and Colorado [
40].
Oxytropis sericea var. speciosa (Torr. & A. Gray) S.L. Welsh [
40].
- bibliographic citation
- Esser, Lora L. 1993. Oxytropis sericea. In: Fire Effects Information System, [Online]. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory (Producer). Available: http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/
Physical Description
provided by USDA PLANTS text
Perennial, Herbs, Stems woody below, or from woody crown or caudex, Taproot present, Nodules present, Ste ms very short, acaulescent or subacaulescent, Stems erect or ascending, Stems less than 1 m tall, Stems solid, Stems or young twigs sparsely to densely hairy, Leaves alternate, Leaves petiolate, Stipules conspicuous, Stipules green, triangulate to lanceolate or foliaceous, Stipules persistent, Stipules free, Stipules clasping stem at the base, Stipules adnate to petiole, Leaves compound, Leaves odd pinnate, Leaf or leaflet margins entire, Leaflets opposite, Leaflets 10-many, Leaves hairy on one or both surfaces, Inflorescences racemes, Inflorescences spikes or spike-like, Inflorescences globose heads, capitate or subcapitate, Inflorescence terminal, Bracts conspicuously present, Bracts hairy, Flowers zygomorphic, Calyx 5-lobed, Calyx hairy, Petals separate, Corolla papilionaceous, Petals clawed, Petals white, Petals ochroleucous, cream colored, Petals orange or yellow, Banner petal ovoid or obovate, Wing petals narrow, oblanceolate to oblong, Keel abruptly curved, or spirall y coiled, Stamens 9-10, Stamens diadelphous, 9 united, 1 free, Filaments glabrous, Style terete, Style persistent in fruit, Fruit a legume, Fruit freely dehiscent, Fruit oblong or ellipsoidal, Fruit fleshy, Fruit coriaceous or becoming woody, Fruit exserted from calyx, Fruit enclosed in calyx, Fruit beaked, Fruit glabrous or glabrate, Fruit hairy, Fruit 11-many seeded, Seeds reniform, Seed surface smooth, Seeds olive, brown, or black.
Oxytropis sericea: Brief Summary
provided by wikipedia EN
Oxytropis sericea is a species of flowering plant in the legume family known by the common names white locoweed, white point-vetch, whitepoint crazyweed, and silky crazyweed. It is native to western North America from Yukon and British Columbia south through the Pacific Northwest, the Rocky Mountains, and the Great Plains.
This plant is a perennial herb growing up to about 30 centimetres (12 inches) in maximum height. It grows from a long taproot. The leaves are up to 20 cm (7.9 in) long. One plant may produce several flowering stalks, each with up to 27 flowers. The fruit is a legume pod up to 2.5 cm (0.98 in) long containing many hairy, leathery, kidney-shaped seeds. The tough seeds can remain dormant in a soil seed bank for a long time. This helps the species survive stress conditions such as cold, exposure, and desiccation. This is often one of the first plants to grow up in the spring.
The plant may occur in a wide variety of habitat types, including those in subalpine and alpine climates. It may occur at 3,708 metres (12,165 feet) in elevation in Colorado. It easily takes hold on rangeland that has been disturbed, and in mature, climax plant communities.
This plant, a species of locoweed, is a common cause of poisoning in livestock in North America. Locoweed poisoning is "the most widespread poisonous plant problem in the western United States." Locoweeds cause locoism, a disease state resulting from chronic neurological damage. Symptoms of locoism include depression, blindness, loss of coordination, emaciation, tremors, paralysis, constipation, deterioration of the coat, decreased libido, abortion, seizures, and death. It may also predispose cattle to high mountain brisket disease, a type of congestive heart failure. The toxic agent in the plant is swainsonine, an alkaloid. Animals affected include cattle, sheep, horses, goats, and wildlife such as elk and mule deer. Horses are very susceptible to the poisoning, and do not recover from locoism. Cattle, sheep, and horses find the plant palatable and even preferable to other forages, even when grass is readily available. They may become chemically addicted to the plant. Cattle tend to prefer the flowers and fruits of the plants, which contain higher levels of swainsonine than the leaves. One to three months of heavy exposure can cause death.
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