Coast larkspur

Stems (8-)15-25(-35) cm. Leaves: ultimate lobes 3-5, longer than 1/2 leaf radius, merely cleft near apices. Inflorescences puberulent, hairs glandular or not. Flowers: lateral sepals 12-24 mm, spurs 13-19 mm; lower petal hairs yellow.

Flowering early-mid spring. Grasslands, open coastal chaparral; 0-100 m; Calif.

The names Delphinium decorum var. racemosum Eastwood and D . decorum var. sonomensis Eastwood have been used for various hybrids between D . decorum subsp. decorum and D . patens . The type specimen of D . decorum var. sonomensis appears to represent a nearly direct intermediate between D . decorum and D . patens . These hybrids are quite common in the San Francisco Bay region where habitats have been disturbed. Normally a woodland plant, D . patens contrasts with D . decorum , which occurs in grassland and brushland. Delphinium decorum subsp. decorum also hybridizes with D . luteum , D . nudicaule , and D . trolliifolium .