Senna pendula |
Senna surattensis |
|
---|---|---|
climbing cassia, valamuerto |
glaucous senna, glossy shower |
|
Habit | Shrubs or trees, to 4(–6) m. Leaves mesophyllous, 8–18 cm, finely, densely hairy; stipules caducous; extrafloral nectaries 1–3, between first only, or also subsequent, leaflet pairs, sessile; leaflet pairs 6–10, blades obovate, obovate-elliptic, oblanceolate-obtuse, 20–50 × 8–20 mm. | |
Racemes | usually 5–21-flowered; bracts late caducous. |
|
Pedicels | 16–25 mm. |
|
Flowers | slightly asymmetric; calyx greenish; corolla pale yellow, longest petal 16–24 mm; androecium heterantherous, stamens 10, staminodes 0; anthers of 9 short stamens 4–5.2 mm, of 1 long stamen 4.5–6.5 mm, dehiscing by 2 pores, apical appendage 0; gynoecium slightly incurved, ovules 18–30; ovary slightly hairy; style slightly incurved. |
|
Legumes | somewhat pendulous, flat, slightly curved, 70–100 × 11–15 mm, slightly corrugated over seeds, indehiscent. |
|
Seeds | dark reddish brown, oblong-ellipsoid. |
|
Senna | pendula is often confused with close relative S. bicapsularis, which is absent from North America and has shorter pedicels, only to 5 mm (H. |
|
s | . Irwin and R. |
|
c | . |
|
Barneby | 1982; B. |
|
Marazzi | et al. |
|
2006b | ). |
|
Senna pendula |
Senna surattensis |
|
Phenology | Flowering late winter–late fall. | |
Habitat | Habitat unknown. | |
Elevation | 0–10 m. (0–0 ft.) | |
Distribution |
Mexico; Central America; South America; West Indies [Introduced, Florida; introduced also in Africa (South Africa), Pacific Islands, Australia]
|
FL; Asia; Africa; Pacific Islands; Australia [Introduced in North America; introduced also in West Indies (Bahamas, Puerto Rico, Saint Vincent)] |
Discussion | Varieties 18–20 (1 in the flora). (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Senna surattensis has been cultivated for centuries as an ornamental in tropical regions, making inference about its origin and native range of geographic distribution a matter of speculation (G. Bentham 1863–1878; D. E. Symon 1966; H. S. Irwin and R. C. Barneby 1982). In North America it is cultivated in California and Texas in addition to Florida (D. Isely 1998). Senna surattensis is often confused with S. multiglandulosa; they are similar in habit and widely cultivated, but S. surattensis possesses seven heterantherous stamens and three staminodes. The similar and closely related S. sulfurea (Colladon) H. S. Lewis & Barneby (with two long stamens instead of one) was considered a subspecies of S. surattensis by B. R. Randell (1989). (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 | ||
Subordinate taxa | ||
Synonyms | Cassia pendula, Chamaefistula pendula | Cassia surattensis, C. fastigiata, C. suffruticosa, C. surattensis subsp. suffruticosa, Psilorhegma suffruticosa, S. speciosa |
Name authority | (Humboldt & Bonpland ex Willdenow) H. S. Irwin & Barneby: Mem. New York Bot. Gard. 35: 378. (1982) | (Burman f.) H. S. Irwin & Barneby: Mem. New York Bot. Gard. 35: 81. (1982) |
Web links |