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Lespedeza cuneata

(Dum.Cours.) G.Don (1832)

This name is accepted

Kingdom: Viridiplantae Phylum: Magnoliophyta Class/Clade: Eudicot-Rosids Order: Fabales Family: Fabaceae Genus: Lespedeza

Chinese lespedeza

Description

Key Characters:

Growth Form: Subshrubs 6–9 dm tall.

Stems: Stems many branched, densely pubescent.

Roots:

Leaves: Leaves compound. Alternate, closely spaced. Leaflets obovate or narrowly obovate; grayish green, 5–20 mm long, 1–15 mm wide. Apex emarginate, sometimes abruptly truncate. Upper surfaces glabrous; lower surfaces densely pubescent. Leaflet margins entire. Petiolate. Stipules small, distinct, caducous.

Flowers: Flowers subsessile, up to 7 mm long, (1)2–4 per cluster. Flowers in clusters on a short, axillary axis, bracts small, persistent, subtending 2 flowers. Flowers papilionaceous; bracteoles at base of calyx. Calyx lobes 5, acute, 3.5–5 mm long, densely pubescent, persistent in fruit. Corolla pale yellow tinged red, in some flowers absent along with stamens, standard with violet red blotches at base, 5–6.5 mm long, keel petals straight. Stamens 10; upper stamen distinct, the other 9 connate into a tube. Ovary superior; style 1; ovule 1, apical.

Fruit: Pods not stipitate; 2.5–4 mm long and slightly narrower; apiculate; with reticulate ridges. Seeds 1 per fruit; pale brown; reniform; ca. 1.5 mm long; ca. 1 mm in diameter.

Ploidy: 2n = 20; 22

Habitat:

Elevation Range:

Historical Distribution

Accepted Subtaxa (in Hawai'i) (1)

Lespedeza cuneata var. cuneata

Uses and Culture

USES

Natural History

Statewide Status

Potentially Naturalizing

Island Status

O'ahu Potentially Naturalizing

Dispersal Agents

Birds

Pollinators

Notes

  • Description digitized by Tiffany Flood
  • Description digitized from the Manual of the Flowering Plants of Hawaii

Bibliography

Name Published In: Gen. Hist. 2: 307 (1832)

Other References

Wagner et al. 1990:679 (O? [apparently sparingly naturalized, but represented by a single coll. from a Honolulu experimental station garden, 1940], DESCR) [Note: the single spm. (Hosaka 2528) redetermined as Lespedeza juncea (L.f.) Pers. var. sericea (Thunb.) Lace & Hemsley by D. Herbst & G. Staples, Oct 1995 (BISH)]

Occurrences

SNo. Scientific Name Scientific Name Authorship Locality Habitat Basis of Record Recorded By Record Number Island Source Date
1 Lespedeza cuneata (Dum.Cours.) G.Don Waianae Mountains, Pupukea-Paumalu Forest Reserve, up from Boy Scout Camp Degraded Psidium cattleianum dominant forest PRESERVED_SPECIMEN Natalia Tangalin 3148 Oahu PTBG 4/22/2012
2 Lespedeza cuneata (Dum.Cours.) G.Don waialua district, waianae mountains, pupukea-paumalu forest reserve, up from boy scout camp. Degraded forest PRESERVED_SPECIMEN n. tangalin, j. lau, k. muscat & k. suzuki 3148 Oahu US 4/22/2012
3 Lespedeza cuneata (Dum.Cours.) G.Don Waialua District, Waianae Mountains, Pupukea-Paumalu Forest Reserve, up from Boy Scout Camp. Degraded forest PRESERVED_SPECIMEN N. Tangalin, J. Lau, K. Muscat & K. Suzuki 3148 Oahu US 4/22/2012
4 Lespedeza cuneata (Dum.Cours.) G.Don Oahu Island, Poamoho Summit trail Degraded forest PRESERVED_SPECIMEN N. Tangalin, J. Lau, K. Muscat & K. Suzuki 3148 Oahu HAPI 4/22/2012
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