The green links below add additional plants to the comparison table. Blue links lead to other Web sites.
enable glossary links

slender bush-clover, slender lespedeza

Habit Herbs.
Stems

ascending or erect, clustered, 30–160 cm, initially wandlike, branched apically, villosulous or appressed-pubescent.

Leaves

stipules subulate to narrowly triangular, to 6 mm;

petiole 7–12 mm, longer than rachis;

leaflet blades narrowly elliptic-oblong to linear, base obtuse or cuneate, apex apiculate, surfaces appressed-pubescent abaxially, usually sparsely appressed-pubescent, sometimes glabrescent (but not glabrous), adaxially;

laterals similar to terminal;

terminal blade 10–35 × 3–5 mm, length 3–7 times width.

Racemes

4–14-flowered, crowded distally, flowers chasmogamous and cleistogamous.

Peduncles

shorter than or equal to subtending leaves.

Pedicels

0.5–2 mm;

bracteoles shorter than calyx tube.

Flowers

chasmogamous 5–7 mm;

calyx 3–4.5 mm, tube 1 mm;

lobes 4, lateral narrowly triangular, 1–1.5 mm, adaxial connate proximally;

corolla pink to purple;

wings 5–6 mm;

keel 4.5–5 mm.

Loments

chasmogamous exserted from calyx, suborbicular, 4–7 mm, cleistogamous exserted from calyx, calyx 1/5–2/5 loment length, similar to chasmogamous, 3.5–5 mm;

stipe 1 mm.

2n

= 20.

Lespedeza virginica

Phenology Flowering late summer–fall.
Habitat Dry upland woodlands, clearings and borders, ruderal sites, old fields, eroded ridges, roadsides, pine barrens, moist savannas, prairie fragments.
Elevation 0–1000 m. (0–3300 ft.)
Distribution
from FNA
AL; AR; CT; DC; DE; FL; GA; IA; IL; IN; KS; KY; LA; MA; MD; MI; MN; MO; MS; NC; NH; NJ; NY; OH; OK; PA; RI; SC; TN; TX; VA; WI; WV; ON; Mexico (Nuevo León)
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Lespedeza virginica forms natural hybrids with L. angustifolia, L. capitata, L. frutescens, L. hirta, L. procumbens (L. × brittonii E. P. Bicknell), L. repens, L. stuevei (L. × neglecta Mackenzie & Bush), and L. violacea.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Source FNA vol. 11.
Parent taxa Fabaceae > subfam. Faboideae > Lespedeza
Sibling taxa
L. angustifolia, L. bicolor, L. capitata, L. cuneata, L. cyrtobotrya, L. daurica, L. frutescens, L. hirta, L. leptostachya, L. procumbens, L. repens, L. stuevei, L. texana, L. thunbergii, L. violacea
Synonyms Medicago virginica, L. reticulata
Name authority (Linnaeus) Britton: Trans. New York Acad. Sci. 12: 64. (1893)
Web links