Lespedeza frutescens |
Lespedeza thunbergii |
|
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shrubby lespedeza, violet bush-clover |
pink bush-clover, purple bush-clover, Thunberg's bush-clover, Thunberg's lespedeza |
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Habit | Herbs. | Herbs or shrubs. |
Stems | ascending or sprawling, clustered, 10–50 cm, branched much of length, sericeous or glabrescent. |
ascending or pendent, clustered, 50–300 cm, branched throughout, young branches densely covered with appressed to spreading whitish to yellowish hairs. |
Leaves | usually 2 sizes, axillary ones subtending racemes much smaller; stipules subulate, 2.5–6 mm; petiole (5–)10–15(–20) mm, longer than rachis; leaflet blades elliptic to narrowly elliptic, apex obtuse or retuse, apiculate, surfaces sericeous abaxially, glabrous adaxially; laterals similar to terminal, without oblique base; terminal blade 10–30(–40) × 8–22 mm (6–10 mm in axillary leaves), length 1.4–2.5 times width. |
gradually smaller distally; stipules subulate to narrowly deltate, 4–8 mm; petiole 10–50 mm, longer than rachis; leaflet blades narrowly elliptic to elliptic, ovate, or oblong, apex acute or obtuse, apiculate, surfaces densely appressed-pubescent abaxially, glabrous or sparsely to densely puberulent or pubescent adaxially; terminal blade 20–90 × 10–50 mm, length 1.5–2.2 times width. |
Racemes | slender, 4–7-flowered, flowers not clustered at apex, flowers chasmogamous and cleistogamous. |
5–20-flowered, single or compound and appearing terminal and paniculate, flowers chasmogamous only. |
Peduncles | usually much longer than subtending leaves, sericeous. |
longer than subtending leaves. |
Pedicels | 0.5–3 mm, appressed-puberulent; bracteoles shorter than calyx tube. |
1.5–5 mm; bracteoles shorter than calyx tube. |
Flowers | chasmogamous 6.5–9 mm; calyx 4–6 mm, appressed-puberulent, tube 1–1.2 mm; lobes 4, lateral narrowly triangular, 2.5–3 mm, adaxial connate proximally, apices acuminate; corolla purple; wings 5.5–6.5 mm; keel 6–8 mm. |
12–16 mm; calyx 3.5–6 mm, tube 1.6–1.9 mm; lobes 4, lateral narrowly ovate-triangular, 2.2–3.6 mm, apices acute to shortly acuminate, not spine-tipped; corolla usually reddish purple, rarely white, banner with darker marks at throat on adaxial surface; wings 8.5–10.5 mm; keel 10.5–15 mm. |
Loments | chasmogamous as long as calyx, ovate to rounded, 5–7 mm, cleistogamous exserted from calyx, calyx 1/5 loment length, rounded, 4–5 mm; stipe subsessile. |
body exserted from calyx, elliptic, 5–14 × 4–6 mm, slightly to densely white appressed-pilose, sometimes glabrescent; stipe 1–2 mm. |
2n | = 20. |
= 22. |
Lespedeza frutescens |
Lespedeza thunbergii |
|
Phenology | Flowering late summer–fall. | Flowering late summer–early fall. |
Habitat | Open deciduous, dry upland woodlands, prairie fragments, alluvial woodlands, ruderal areas, limestone or sandy soils. | Woodland borders, roadsides. |
Elevation | 0–900 m. (0–3000 ft.) | 0–500 m. (0–1600 ft.) |
Distribution |
AL; AR; CT; DC; DE; FL; GA; IA; IL; IN; KS; KY; LA; MA; MD; ME; MI; MO; MS; NC; NE; NH; NJ; NY; OH; OK; PA; RI; SC; TN; TX; VA; VT; WV; ON
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AL; AR; CT; FL; GA; IL; IN; KS; KY; LA; MA; MD; MI; MO; NC; NJ; NY; OH; PA; SC; VA; WI; ON; Asia (China, e India, Japan, Korea, Taiwan) [Introduced in North America]
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Discussion | The name Lespedeza violacea was widely applied to L. frutescens in the past; however, the type specimen of the basionym (Hedysarum violaceum) represents the species previously called L. intermedia. The result is that the name L. violacea replaces what was called L. intermedia, and L. frutescens must be taken up for this species (J. L. Reveal and F. R. Barrie 1991). Lespedeza frutescens forms natural hybrids with L. capitata, L. hirta, L. procumbens, L. repens, L. stuevei, L. violacea, and L. virginica. Hybrids with L. violacea are common (A. F. Clewell 1966) and have been called L. × acuticarpa Mackenzie & Bush. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Lespedeza thunbergii is polymorphic in habit of natural and cultivated forms, type and density of indument on stems and leaves, size and shape of leaflets, and size of flowers in East Asia (H. Ohashi et al. 2009). It is most notably distinguished by relatively large flowers with long, acuminate or acute calyx lobes and relatively large, elliptic loments. In the flora area, it has been planted for wildlife food and has naturalized more extensively than other shrubby Lespedeza species. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Source | FNA vol. 11. | FNA vol. 11. |
Parent taxa | Fabaceae > subfam. Faboideae > Lespedeza | Fabaceae > subfam. Faboideae > Lespedeza |
Sibling taxa | ||
Synonyms | Hedysarum frutescens, L. prairea, L. violacea var. divergens, L. violacea var. prairea | Desmodium thunbergii, L. formosa, L. japonica |
Name authority | (Linnaeus) Hornemann: Hort. Bot. Hafn. 2: 699. (1815) | (de Candolle) Nakai: Bull. Forest Exp. Sta., Chosen 6: 15. (1927) |
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