Caragana halodendron

It is a spiny deciduous shrub growing to 0.5–2 metres (1 ft 8 in – 6 ft 7 in) tall with dark grey-brown bark. The ends of twigs narrow to spines. The leaves are pinnate with two or four leaflets in one or two pairs and two spine-like basal stipules; they are glaucous grey-green with silky white hairs when young, becoming glabrous. The leaflets are 1.2–3.5 cm long and 0.6 1 cm broad. The flowers are produced on short racemes with 1–5 flowers; they are typical pea-flowers, pink to pale purple, 10–15 mm long. The seeds are produced in an inflated yellow-brown pod 1.5–3 cm long and 0.5–1.2 cm broad.^[2][3]

The plant has a deep and wide root system, with the lateral roots sending up new shoots. In this manner the plant forms extensive thickets.^{[citation needed]}

It is sometimes cultivated as an introduced species for its attractive flowers and ability to grow on difficult saline soils that few other plants tolerate.^[3] It is used for shelterbelts in Canada.^[3] It is naturalised in Central European Russia, Ukraine (including Crimea), the North Caucasus, and West Siberia; and in North America in Saskatchewan and Utah.^[1] It is sometimes a noxious weed.^{[citation needed]} When introduced to areas of suitable climate, such as California where it is a known weed, it can invade cultivated land and spread relatively quickly.^{[citation needed]}