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

Argentine senna, Argentine wild sensitive plant

American senna, northern wild senna

Habit Shrubs or trees, to 3.5 m. Herbs, perennial, to 0.8–2.2 m.Leaves mesophyllous, 13–23 cm, finely hairy; stipules caducous; extrafloral nectary 1, base of or along petiole, sessile or shortly stipitate; leaflet pairs 6–10, blades elliptic, oblong-elliptic, or lanceolate-elliptic, 30–60 × 10–20 mm.
Leaves

mesophyllous, 5.5–9.5 cm, glabrous or glabrate;

stipules caducous;

extrafloral nectary 1, between first leaflet pair, sessile or short-stipitate;

leaflet pairs 3, blades oblong-lanceolate, 25–60 × 5–14 mm.

Racemes

4–18-flowered;

bracts caducous.

25–37-flowered;

bracts caducous.

Pedicels

13–23 mm.

11–22 mm.

Flowers

monosymmetric;

calyx brownish to greenish yellow;

corolla golden yellow, longest petal 8–16 mm;

androecium heterantherous, stamens 7, middle stamens 1/2 as long as abaxial or smaller, staminodes 3;

anthers of middle stamens to 3.6–4.8 mm, of abaxial stamens 5.2–6.5 mm, dehiscing by nearly U-shaped pore, apical appendage inconspicuous;

gynoecium incurved, ovules 34–50;

ovary hairy;

style slightly incurved.

monosymmetric;

calyx pinkish brown;

corolla yellow, longest petal 8–12 mm;

androecium heterantherous, stamens 7, staminodes 3;

anthers of middle stamens 2.6–3.5 mm, of abaxial stamens 4–5 mm, truncate, dehiscing by 2 pores, apical appendage 0;

gynoecium incurved, ovules 10–16;

ovary densely hairy;

style incurved, not dilated.

Legumes

somewhat pendulous, cylindrical, straight, 40–120 × 6–10 mm, corrugated over seeds, indehiscent.

ascending, flat, curved downward, 60–115 × 5.5–8 mm, corrugated over seeds, tardily dehiscent, each seed compartment nearly as wide as long.

Seeds

dull brown or dark reddish brown, obliquely obovoid or oblong-ellipsoid.

ochre, yellowish brown, or dark reddish brown, ovoid or rhomboid.

2n

= 28.

Senna corymbosa

Senna hebecarpa

Phenology Flowering early winter–mid spring. Flowering mid summer–early fall.
Habitat Thickets, brushy stream and river banks, waste places. Open woodlands, valley floors, creek banks, swamps, thickets, pastures.
Elevation 0–500 m. [0–1600 ft.] 0–500 m. [0–1600 ft.]
Distribution
from FNA
FL; GA; LA; MS; SC; TX; s South America
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
CT; DE; IL; IN; KY; MA; MD; MI; MO; NC; NH; NJ; NY; OH; PA; TN; VA; VT; WV; ON
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Senna corymbosa has been cultivated for over two centuries and is a common ornamental in many botanical gardens worldwide; it has become naturalized in warmer western Europe and South Africa (H. S. Irwin and R. C. Barneby 1982).

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

Source FNA vol. 11. FNA vol. 11.
Parent taxa Fabaceae > subfam. Caesalpinioideae (excluding Mimosoid clade) > Senna Fabaceae > subfam. Caesalpinioideae (excluding Mimosoid clade) > Senna
Sibling taxa
S. alata, S. armata, S. artemisioides, S. atomaria, S. bauhinioides, S. covesii, S. durangensis, S. hebecarpa, S. hirsuta, S. ligustrina, S. lindheimeriana, S. marilandica, S. mexicana, S. multiglandulosa, S. obtusifolia, S. occidentalis, S. orcuttii, S. pendula, S. pilosior, S. pumilio, S. ripleyana, S. roemeriana, S. surattensis, S. wislizeni
S. alata, S. armata, S. artemisioides, S. atomaria, S. bauhinioides, S. corymbosa, S. covesii, S. durangensis, S. hirsuta, S. ligustrina, S. lindheimeriana, S. marilandica, S. mexicana, S. multiglandulosa, S. obtusifolia, S. occidentalis, S. orcuttii, S. pendula, S. pilosior, S. pumilio, S. ripleyana, S. roemeriana, S. surattensis, S. wislizeni
Synonyms Cassia corymbosa, Adipera corymbosa Cassia hebecarpa, C. hebecarpa var. longipila, S. hebecarpa var. longipila
Name authority (Lamarck) H. S. Irwin & Barneby: Mem. New York Bot. Gard. 35: 397. (1982) (Fernald) H. S. Irwin & Barneby: Mem. New York Bot. Gard. 35: 446. (1982)
Web links