Scientific Name: Lotus rigidus or Acmispon rigidus
Common Name: Desert Rock Pea, Deer Vetch, Broom deerweed
Family: Fabaceae, Pea family
Duration: Perennial
Size:1 or 2 feet (3 feet).
Growth Form: Subshrub, forb/herb; stems rigid or ascending, somewhat woody below, hairs finely strigose, branched.
Leaves: Green; irregularly pinnate to palmate, 3 to 5 foliate, leaflets oblanceolate to obovate.
Flower Color: Yellow, turning orange-red; inflorescence with 1 to 3 flowers on peduncle, fruit is a legume.
Flowering Season: February to May.
Comments: This is the most xerophytic of the Lotus in Arizona. The rounded clumps with flowers at the tips look especially nice when several are grown in the same vicinity.
