Delphinium tricorne Michx.
Dwarf larkspur
Dwarf larkspurs are North American natives.
Plants: 6–24″ (15–60 cm) tall. Leaves near the base are on long stems, arranged loosely, up to 5″ (12 cm), and deeply subdivided, somewhat palmlike in appearance.
Leaves: A single stem has a few alternate leaves, and is topped by a cluster of deep blue or violet or white flowers up to 6″ (15 cm) tall.
Flowers: A raceme of 6-24 flowers are purple, blue, white, or combinations of these colors. The attractive flowers have 4-5 sepals and a narrow spur about ¾″ (2 cm) long behind them, opening into five petals. Each flower is 1–1½″ (3–4 cm) long. They appear from April to May.
Fruits: Fruits resemble groups of three tiny bean pods, each about 1 ⨉ ⅛″ (2.5 cm ⨉ 5 mm).
Habitats: Rich mesic forests, often over calcareous rocks.
Edibility: Poisonous 
Very poisonous to cattle because of
alkaloids that act as neuromuscular blocking agents; probably
also poisonous to people.
Online References:
5/28/2009 · Mesa Verde, Cortez, Colorado · ≈ 3 × 4½″ (8.3 × 11 cm) 
5/31/2009 · Grand Canyon, North Rim, Arizona · ≈ 1¾ × 2½″ (4.7 × 6.2 cm) 
| Kingdom | Plantae | Plants, but not fungi, lichens, or algae (from Stearn's Botanical Latin) |
| Subkingdom | Tracheobionta | Vascular plants—plants with a “circulatory system” for delivering water and nutrients |
| Division | Magnoliophyta | Flowering plants, also known as angiosperms |
| Class | Magnoliopsida | Dicotyledons—plants with two initial seed leaves |
| Subclass | Magnoliidae | Includes magnolias, nutmeg, bay laurel, cinnamon, avocado, black pepper, and many others |
| Order | Ranunculales | Basal (evolved earlier) eudicots, also called “true dicots” |
| Family | Ranunculaceae | Buttercup family |
| Genus | Delphinium | From Greek delphinion, “larkspur”; the name is derived from the Greek for “dolphin” because of the shape of some flowers |
| Species | tricorne | From latin, for ”with three horns,“ for the shape of the fruit |
Delphinium tricorne description by Thomas H. Kent, not updated.
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