Flora of North America species comparison

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Sesbania grandiflora

vegetable hummingbird
Habit Trees, to 6 m. Stems with close-pressed hairs; pith not observed.
Leaves

8–43+ cm;

stipules 0.8–0.9 cm, with conspicuous inner fold throughout, inner fold often with velutinous, stipitate glands, glands absent at base;

pulvinus at least 1/2 as long as petiole;

rachis glabrescent or glabrous, with stipitate glands at base of leaflets in canal (not between leaflet pairs);

stipels long, narrow, glandular;

leaflets 10–20–50+, blades ligulate to elliptic-oblong, base obtuse to acute, apex emarginate to truncate, surfaces usually glabrous, sometimes with close-pressed, golden hairs.
Inflorescences

1–12+-flowered, racemes or panicles.
Peduncles

(1.2–)1.9–2.3(–3.1) cm.
Flowers

(5.1–)6.3–7(–7.9) cm;

calyx zygomorphic, ± bilabiate, lobes 0 or 5, rounded or obsolete, rim often with sinuous hairs from inner surface, with short, straight, close-pressed hairs on outer surface near teeth, stalked glands absent from rim, absent in fruit;

corolla white or red-crimson;

banner oblong, base truncate to cordate, apex emarginate, calluses as shallow ridges along claw;

wings without basal tooth;

keel ± same color throughout or claw white and blade pink or scarlet, apex acute-rounded, curved upward to slightly inward, with basal tooth;

stamens curved upward within keel;

style curved upward with keel;

ovules 27–48.
Legumes

brown-tan, without mottling, flattened parallel to sutures, rectangular in cross section, straight to falcate, (35.1–)38.7–43.8(–49.7) × (0.5–)0.7–0.8(–0.9) cm, beak gradually tapered, flattened, (0.6–)1–1.7(–2) cm, tardily dehiscent;

stipe (4.3–)4.4–4.5(–4.6) cm.
Seeds

(27–)35–40(–46), yellow-green or brown to reddish, without mottling, reniform-orbicular.
2n

= 12.

Sesbania grandiflora
Phenology Flowering summer–fall.
Habitat Wet areas, riparian and wetland sandy soils, disturbed sites.
Elevation 0–20 m. (0–100 ft.)
Distribution
from FNA
FL; s Mexico; Central America; South America; West Indies; se Asia; Africa; Pacific Islands; Australia [Introduced in North America]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Sesbania grandiflora has relatively large, showy flowers and is grown throughout the tropics as an ornamental. Its original range is difficult to ascertain due to its widespread horticultural use; other Sesbania species endemic to the South Pacific have similar morphology, and molecular evidence suggests shared ancestry (F. T. Farruggia 2009).

In the flora area, Sesbania grandiflora is known from the Florida Keys.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Source FNA vol. 11.
Parent taxa Fabaceae > subfam. Faboideae > Sesbania
Sibling taxa
S. drummondii, S. herbacea, S. punicea, S. sericea, S. vesicaria, S. virgata
Synonyms Robinia grandiflora, Aeschynomene grandiflora, Agati grandiflora, Coronilla grandiflora, Dolichos arboreus, Emerus grandiflorus, Resupinaria grandiflora, S. coccinea
Name authority (Linnaeus) Poiret in J. Lamarck et al.: Encycl. 7: 127. (1806) — (as Sesban grandiflorus)
Web links 
Unless otherwise noted, all data comes from the online version of the Flora of North America, who have made most of their content available via a Creative Commons license (CC BY 4.0).



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