Minnesota Wildflowers


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Pediomelum esculentum (Prairie Turnip)

Plant Info
Also known as: Large Indian Breadroot, Indian Turnip
Genus:Pediomelum
Family:Fabaceae (Pea)
Life cycle:perennial
Origin:native
Habitat:sun; dry prairie, often rocky soil
Bloom season:May - July
Plant height:12 to 16 inches
County distribution (click map to enlarge):Minnesota county distribution map

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Detailed Information

Flower: Flower shape: irregular Cluster type: spike

[photo of flowers] Short, cylindrical, densely hairy spike of ½-inch pea-shaped flowers. Flowers are light blue to purple turning creamy with age; the upper petal (standard) is round with darker veins; the lateral wings below it are somewhat lighter in color, inflated over a small keel underneath. The calyx tube and floral bracts are covered in long silvery hairs.

Leaves and stem: Leaf attachment: alternate Leaf type: palmate

[photo of leaves] Leaves are palmately compound in groups of 5 on a stalk up to 6 inches long. Leaflets are oval elliptic, 1 to 2 inches long, 1/3 to ¾ inch wide, narrowing at the base, rounded, blunt or pointed at the tip, upper surface nearly smooth, undersides covered in flattened hairs. Plant is stout, stems and leaves are erect with multiple branches. Stems are densely hairy.

Notes:

Both Prairie Turnip and Silverleaf Scurf Pea (P. argophyllum) are restricted to open prairie habitats and commonly encountered in those habitats. As the common names imply this species has a large, starchy root that was utilized by both Native American and European pioneers alike. While I have run across it at several locations in past years, all of my images come from out of state. This species was formerly known as Psoralea esculenta.

Where to buy native seed and plants

Help support this site by buying seeds & plants from these vendors. Tell them we sent you!

  • Landscape Alternatives - Distinctive Native Plants since 1986!
  • Prairie Restorations - Bringing people together with the land
  • Shop for native seeds and plants at PrairieMoon.com!
  • Out Back Nursery and Landscaping - Where Ecology and Horticulture Unite
  • Shooting Star Native Seeds - Native Prairie Grass and Wildflower Seeds

Map of native plant purveyors in the upper midwest

More photos

Photos courtesy Peter M. Dziuk taken in western South Dakota

Comments

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