Crotalaria virgulata Klotzsch

First published in W.C.H.Peters, Naturw. Reise Mossambique 6(Bot., 1): 56 (1861)
This species is accepted
The native range of this species is Tanzania to S. Africa. It is an annual or subshrub and grows primarily in the seasonally dry tropical biome.

Descriptions

Leguminosae, various authors. Flora Zambesiaca 3:7. 2003

Morphology General Habit
Decumbent to erect annual or short-lived perennial, up to 1.8 m tall; branches subappressed pubescent to spreading hirsute.
Morphology Leaves
Leaves 3-foliolate, sometimes mostly on short shoots; leaflets 4–50 × 2–15 mm, linear or oblanceolate to elliptic-oblong or obovate, hairy on both surfaces or only beneath; petiole 2–30 mm long; stipules 1–3 mm long, subulate to attenuate-triangular.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Racemes usually of two sorts; primary racemes terminal or leaf-opposed on long shoots, 2–40 cm long, laxly 3–40-flowered, indeterminate (ending in a bud) or determinate (ending in a bristle-like extension of the rhachis); supplementary inflorescences usually developed (at least later in the season) from short shoots in axils of the main leaves, with 1–2 flowers on a filiform axis 0.2–2.5 cm long; bracts 0.5–4 mm long, linear-subulate to linear-lanceolate, usually shorter than the pedicel; bracteoles on the pedicel, setaceous.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Calyx
Calyx 3.5–9 mm long, pubescent; lobes narrowly attenuate-triangular (rarely somewhat oblong and apiculate in subsp. pauciflora), 1.5–2.5 times as long as the tube, lanate along the inner margins (particularly of the lower lobes) when young.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Corolla
Standard broadly elliptic, yellow, often lined red, pubescent or rarely almost glabrous outside; wings broadened upwards, nearly as long as the keel; keel 6–12(14) mm long, angular, with a narrow twisted beak.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
Pod shortly stipitate, 8–15 × 5–9 mm, ± oblong-obovoid (sometimes only slightly broadened apically), pubescent outside and sometimes also inside, 6–10(12)-seeded.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Seeds
Seeds 2.2–3 mm long, oblique-cordiform, smooth, brown.
[FZ]

Extinction risk predictions for the world's flowering plants to support their conservation (2024). Bachman, S.P., Brown, M.J.M., Leão, T.C.C., Lughadha, E.N., Walker, B.E. https://nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/nph.19592

Conservation
Predicted extinction risk: not threatened. Confidence: confident
[AERP]

Leguminosae, J. B. Gillett, R. M. Polhill & B. Verdcourt. Flora of Tropical East Africa. 1971

Morphology General Habit
Erect or rather spreading annual or short-lived perennial, up to 5–17 dm. tall, variably branched.
Morphology Stem
Stem subappressed pubescent with fine rather irregularly arranged white hairs, rarely spreading and dense.
Morphology Leaves
Leaves mostly crowded on very short axillary shoots, appearing fasciculate, 3-foliolate; leaflets linear-oblanceolate to oblanceolate or oblong-lanceolate, rarely obovate, up to 10–25 mm. long, 2–8 mm. wide, glabrous or pubescent above, pubescent beneath; petiole slender, ± 3–8 mm. long.
Morphology Leaves Stipules
Stipules filiform or linear-subulate, up to 1–2 mm. long.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Inflorescences usually both lax terminal or leaf-opposed racemes, up to 6–22 cm. long, with a number of flowers, and also short slender axes apparently axillary from the leaf-clusters, with up to 1–4 flowers, up to ± 2 cm. long; bracts linear to linear-lanceolate, 1–3 mm. long, shorter than the pedicel; bracteoles inserted on the pedicel, filiform, small.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Calyx
Calyx 5–7(–8) mm. long, with the tube protracted on the lower side, appressed pubescent; upper lobes narrowly attenuate-triangular, much longer than the tube.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Corolla
Standard broadly elliptic to obovate or suborbicular, yellow, veined reddish-brown, densely pubescent outside; wings oblong-obovate, nearly as long as the keel; keel bent at right-angles in the lower half, with a long narrow twisted beak, 10–13 mm. long, lanate along the upper margin.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
Pod subsessile to shortly stipitate, shortly oblong-ellipsoid or somewhat obovoid, 11–14(–18) mm. long, 5–7 mm. across, usually rather densely subappressed pubescent outside, sometimes ± glabrescent, pubescent inside, ± 6–12(–18)-seeded.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Seeds
Seeds oblique-cordiform, ± 3 mm. long, smooth, brown.
Habitat
Brachystegia woodland and deciduous bushland, extending into upland grassland; 700–1650m.
Distribution
Zambia and Rhodesia to the Transvaal T4 T6 T7 T8
[FTEA]

International Legume Database and Information Service

Conservation
Not Threatened
Ecology
Africa: Zanzibar-Inhambane regional transition zone; grassland., Tongaland-Pondoland regional transition zone; bushland and thicket, Tongaland-Pondoland regional transition zone; woodland, Zambezian woodland, Zambezian bushland and thicket, Zambezian gras
Morphology General Habit
Annual, Not climbing, Herb
[ILDIS]

Sources

  • Angiosperm Extinction Risk Predictions v1

    • Angiosperm Threat Predictions
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0

  • Flora Zambesiaca

    • Flora Zambesiaca
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

  • Flora of Tropical East Africa

    • Flora of Tropical East Africa
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

  • Herbarium Catalogue Specimens

    • Digital Image © Board of Trustees, RBG Kew http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

  • International Legume Database and Information Service

    • International Legume Database and Information Service (ILDIS) V10.39 Nov 2011
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

  • Kew Names and Taxonomic Backbone

    • The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants 2024. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and https://powo.science.kew.org/
    • © Copyright 2023 International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

  • World Checklist of Vascular plants (WCVP)

    • The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants 2024. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and https://powo.science.kew.org/
    • © Copyright 2023 World Checklist of Vascular Plants. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0