Flower:

A cluster of beautiful bi-color flowers at the end of a stem. Flowers of this pea family member are ½ to ¾ inch wide and have a creamy yellow colored erect hood (the standard) with two pink, rudder shaped lateral petals (the wings) that loosely drape along side the lower lip (keel) that is a lighter yellowish pink. The outer surface of the upper standard, calyx and flower stalks are covered with fine dense hairs.

Leaves and stem:

Leaves are compound in groups of 15 to 31. Leaflets are oval elliptic to lance elliptic with pointed tips, ½ to 1 long, to 3/8 inch wide, finely hairy on the underside especially along the midrib, silky hairy to hairless on the upper surface. Stems are densely hairy and few branched, with multiple stems from a single crown.

Notes:

Goat's-rue is restricted to Minnesota's southeast counties preferring acidic, open sandy prairie soils with sparse tree cover present. Dry site adapted invasive species such as spotted knapweed and leafy spurge present constant concerns for species such as this with already diminished populations from habitat lose to agriculture and over grazing. According to the DNR, it was designated a State Special Concern species in 1984. It does not do well as a garden plant due to its specific soil requirements. Factoid: Back in the days before binomial nomenclature (2-word genus-species Latin names) came into being, a species scientific name might have been several words long, to be as descriptive as possible. In the 1800s naturalist Charles Pickering referred to Goat's-rue as Cicer astragaloides virginianus hirsutie pubescens floribus amplis subrubentibus.