It is native to the western United States from Washington to California, where it grows mostly in mountain habitat.

It is a hairy, erect perennial herb often exceeding a meter in height.

The flower is purple to yellowish or whitish in color and has a sickle-shaped keel.

The fruit is a silky-hairy legume pod up to 5 centimetres (2 in) long containing several seeds.

In Oregon, where the plant is native, it has been cultivated for several uses, including reforestation and revegetation of roadsides and other disturbed habitat.