1. Alhagi sparsifolia Shaparenko ex Keller & Shaparenko, Sovetsk. Bot. 3-4: 167. 1993.
骆驼刺 luo tuo ci
Subshrubs, 25-50 cm tall. Stems erect, caespitose. Stipules subulate, ca. 1 mm. Leaves subsessile; leaflet blade ovate, obovate, or obovate-orbicular to elliptic, 8-15 × 6-10 mm, glabrous, base cuneate, apex rounded to slightly acute. Racemes lax, 3-8-flowered; peduncle ligneous; rachis hardened, terminating in a strong spine; bracts subulate, ca. 1 mm. Pedicel 1-3 mm; bracteoles 2, at base of calyx. Calyx campanulate, 4-5 mm, pubescent; teeth triangular to subulate-triangular, 1/4-1/3 as long as tube. Corolla reddish purple; standard narrowly obovate, 8-9 mm; wings ca. 3/4 as long as standard; keel subequaling standard. Ovary sessile, glabrous. Legume straight to slightly curved, 1.2-2.5 cm, glabrous. Fl. Jun-Jul, fr. Jul-Aug. 2n = 16.
Desert plains, low hills; 100-700 m. C and N Gansu, W Nei Mongol, E Qinghai, E Xinjiang [Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, W Mongolia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan].
The calyx teeth are variable, even on the same plant; therefore, it is difficult to distinguish from other species westward in neighboring countries.
