General: Three-corner Milkvetch (Astragalus geyeri var. triquetrus) is a short, spindly, but upright annual forb with pinnately divided leaves. The small pea-flowers are white, but the defining character is the 3-cornered seedpod.

Three-corner Milkvetch is an uncommon component of desert vegetation in the Mojave Desert Scrub community on wind-blown sandy soils. Around Las Vegas, look for this species northeast of town in Dry Lake Valley and in the Valley of Fire State Park. Apparently, this species does not appear every year, requiring wetter than average seasons to germinate.

Family: Fabaceae (Legume).

Other Names: Geyer's milkvetch, Beaver Dam milk-vetch, Sand milk-vetch, Threecorner milkvetch, Geyer milkvetch; Astragalus triquetrus; Phaca triquetra

Plant Form: Upright, spindly annual.

Height: About 5 inches, to about 8-inches.

Stems: One, upright, divided, covered with a fine hairs.

Leaves: About 1-2 inches long, pinnately divided with about 9 leaflets, each to about 1/2 inch long.

Flowers: Blooms in the spring. Flowers small, pea-like, white. Fine pink veins dry to purple

Seeds: Seed pod about 1/2-inch long, triangular in cross-section.

Habitat: Wind-blown sandy soils.

Elevation: To about 1,100 to 2,400 ft.

Distribution: Northwestern Arizona and southeastern Nevada

Comments: Three-corner milkvetch is a Fully Protected species in the state of Nevada (on the state Critically Endangered Species List). The conservation status rank is G4 (apparently secure, though frequently quite rare in parts of its range, especially at its periphery), S2 (imperiled due to rarity or other demonstrable factors).