Plants perennial, caulescent, villous-villosulous, hairs basifixed.
Stems several–numerous, decumbent to ascending, leafless at bases, 15–50 cm.
Leaves 3–8.5 cm; leaflets 13–21, elliptic-oblong to oblanceolate, (4)6–20(23) × 2–4 mm, tips truncate-retuse to obtuse, surfaces usually strigillose; stipules 1.5–6.5 mm, at least lowermost connate-sheathing.
Inflorescences racemes loosely 10–30-flowered; peduncles (3)6–14 cm; bracts (1.5)2–5 mm; pedicels 1.3–3.5 mm; bracteoles 0–2.
Flowers declined or nodding at anthesis; calyces 6.4–9.7 mm, silky villous with white and some black hairs, tubes 5.2–7 mm, teeth triangular, 0.9–3 mm; corollas 11.5–17.4 mm, ochroleucous or yellowish; ovules (15)19–27.
Fruits unilocular, pendulous, linear-oblong, strongly laterally compressed, straight or slightly decurved, bicarinate, 27–43 × 3.4–5 mm, sparsely to densely strigillose, rarely glabrous; valves papery; stipes 8–14 mm.
Oak woodlands, coniferous forests, chaparral. Flowering Mar–May. 600–1400 m. Sisk. CA. Native.