Sesbania virgata |
Sesbania punicea |
|
---|---|---|
wand riverhemp |
rattlebox, scarlet sesban |
|
Habit | Shrubs or trees, to 4 m. | Shrubs or trees, to 4 m. |
Stems | glabrous or pilose, hairs persistent, close-pressed, golden or clear in age, developing leaves and young stems with same pubescence of simple hairs; pith solid or spongy. |
glabrous in age; pith spongy, soon becoming obsolete. |
Leaves | 13–25+ cm; stipules 0.3–0.4 cm, with conspicuous inner fold throughout, hairs dense, close-pressed, inner fold and base with stipitate, multicellular glands; pulvinus slightly more than 1/2 as long as petiole; rachis ± sericeous, without stipitate glands, obscure gland(s) present at petiolule base; stipels reduced in size between successive leaflets, long-filamentous glandular; leaflets 28–36+, blades elliptic-ovate to oblong, base acute, apex obtuse to acute, surfaces silky sericeous abaxially, usually glabrous adaxially. |
4.5–30+ cm; stipules 0.4–0.5 cm, with inconspicuous inner fold 2/3 its length, inner fold and base often with stipitate, multicellular glands and long, simple hairs; pulvinus less than 1/2 as long as petiole; rachis ± appressed-pilose, with or without stipitate glands in canal, stipitate gland present at petiolule base; stipels narrow, gland tipped; leaflets 14–40, blades elliptic to oblong-obovate, base acute-obtuse, apex truncate to obtuse, surfaces glabrous or sparsely pubescent abaxially, usually glabrous adaxially. |
Inflorescences | 5–15+-flowered, racemes. |
5–15+-flowered, racemes. |
Peduncles | (0.6–)1.7–2.1(–4.1) cm. |
(1.1–)2.1–2.4(–3.3) cm. |
Flowers | (0.7–)0.9–1(–1.3) cm; calyx ± zygomorphic, lobes 5, short-acuminate, rim of tube villose, stalked glands between abaxial lobes absent in fruit; corolla yellow, banner venation sometimes darker; banner ovate, base cordate-truncate, apex emarginate, becoming strongly reflexed and contorted, calluses as relatively small, acute teeth at claw base, thickened, knoblike at base of blade/top of claw; wings without basal tooth; keel ± same color throughout, apex acute, curved strongly inward, without basal tooth; stamens incurved within keel; style recurved; ovules 4–6. |
(1.8–)2–2.2(–2.5) cm; calyx ± zygomorphic, usually absent at fruit maturity, lobes 5, short and broad, sinuses shallow, rim of tube glabrous, stalked glands absent; corolla orange-grenadine-red; banner ovate, base truncate, apex emarginate, calluses as relatively small, acute teeth at claw base; wings without basal tooth; keel ± same color throughout, apex rounded-obtuse, curved upward, without basal tooth; stamens curved upward within keel; style curved upward with stamens; ovules 6 or 7(–10). |
Legumes | red- to gray-brown, without horizontal mottling in age, 4-angled, square in cross section, straight or slightly falcate, (0.8–)4.4–5.5(–6.5) × (0.7–)0.8(–0.9) cm, thick, woody, seed chambers apparent in young fruits becoming obscure at maturity, margins of young fruits with shallow thin ridges resembling early wings of S. punicea or S. drummondii, ridges becoming thickened and rounded at maturity, beak short-pyramidal, (0.2–)0.4–0.7(–1.3) cm, indehiscent; stipe (0.4–)0.5–0.6(–0.9) cm. |
red-brown, with or without horizontal mottling, 4-angled, square in cross section, ± straight, with pronounced, spreading wings, torulose or not, (5.2–)8.8–9.5(–10.7) × (0.7–)0.8(–9) cm, seed compartments slightly pronounced externally in age, beak long-pyramidal to triangular, (0.5–)0.9–1(–1.4) cm, tardily dehiscent; stipe (0.8–)1.1–1.2(–1.6) cm. |
Seeds | (1–)4 or 5(or 6), reddish brown to gray, without mottling, reniform-orbicular. |
(1–)6 or 7(–10), red-brown to gray, without mottling, globose to reniform-orbicular. |
2n | = 12. |
= 12. |
Sesbania virgata |
Sesbania punicea |
|
Phenology | Flowering early summer–early fall. | Flowering early summer–fall. |
Habitat | Wet areas, riparian, wetlands, coastal, disturbed sites. | Wet areas, riparian, wetlands, coastal, disturbed sites. |
Elevation | 0–20 m. [0–70 ft.] | 0–500 m. [0–1600 ft.] |
Distribution |
FL; MS; South America [Introduced also in se Mexico (Veracruz), West Indies, Central America] |
AL; AR; CA; FL; GA; LA; MS; NC; SC; TX; VA; South America [Introduced in North America; introduced also in e Mexico, West Indies, Central America, Africa (South Africa)]
|
Discussion | Sesbania virgata is native to northern Argentina and southern Paraguay and has been introduced to numerous port cities in the Americas. In the flora area, it is known from the Pensacola, Florida, region and from several populations along the coastline southeastward to Hillsborough and Pinellas counties and westward to Harrison County, Mississippi. The most distinguishing characteristic of the species is the quadrangular pod. Sesbania affinis De Wildeman (1904) is a later homonym (not Schrader ex de Candolle 1825) that pertains here. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Sesbania punicea is used as an ornamental and is commonly sold under the name Scarlet Sesban. This native of central South America can survive short freezes and has escaped and become a noxious weed in some wetland locations. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Source | FNA vol. 11. | FNA vol. 11. |
Parent taxa | ||
Sibling taxa | ||
Synonyms | Aeschynomene virgata, Agati virgata, Coursetia virgata, Emerus marginatus, S. marginata, S. tetragona | Piscidia punicea, Aeschynomene miniata, Daubentonia punicea, S. tripetii |
Name authority | (Cavanilles) Poiret in J. Lamarck et al.: Encycl. 7: 129. (1806) — (as Sesban) | (Cavanilles) Bentham in C. F. P. von Martius et al.: Fl. Bras. 15(1): 43. (1859) |
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