Colutea abyssinica Kunth & C.D.Bouché

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

Morphology General Habit

Shrub 1–4 m. tall; young stems white strigulose.

Morphology Leaves

Stipules triangular, 2–4 mm. long; leaf-rhachis white strigulose or pubescent, up to 6 cm. long, including a petiole of 4–7 mm., prolonged 1–4 mm. beyond lateral leaflets; petiolules 1 mm. long; leaflets 9–15, elliptic, the terminal obovate, up to 18 mm. long by 10 mm. wide, mucronate, glabrous or nearly so above, white strigulose beneath.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences

Racemes 2–3-flowered; peduncle 1–2 cm. long, with both white and dark appressed hairs; bracts oval, 1–2 mm. long; pedicels with mainly black hairs, 7–9 mm. long; bracteoles on calyx-base, 0·5 mm. long.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Calyx

Calyx black or white strigulose; tube 4–5 mm. long; teeth acuminate, 1–2 mm. long.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Corolla

Corolla dark reddish-brown (but see note below), yellowish-green at the base, the keel almost black at the tip; standard 13–15 mm. long (including a claw of 4 mm.), 13–14 mm. wide; folds at base of limb very slight, forming a broad inverted V; wing with claw 4 mm., blade 6 mm. by 2 mm. and auricle 1·5 mm. long; keel with claw 9 mm. long and blade semicircular, 9 mm. across its diameter, including the 2 mm. auricle.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Androecium Stamens

Filament-sheath 10 mm., free parts 3–5 mm., anthers 1 mm. long.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Gynoecium Pistil

Ovary glabrous or almost so; stipe and style both ± 6 mm. long.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits

Pod purplish or brownish, papery, acute, 3–8 cm. long including the 5–22 mm. long stipe, 1·5–2·8 cm. wide, apparently sometimes splitting near the apex.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Seeds

Seeds dark brown, kidney-shaped, 3 by 2·5 by 1 mm.

Figures

Fig. 151, p. 1062

Habitat

Montane grassland, evergreen scrub and forest margins; 1800–3000 m., except the Uganda plants which are from places between 1200 and 1400 m.; rainfall 700–1000 mm.

Distribution

common in parts of K3 and T2 but elsewhere rare and localalthough a conspicuous plant it has been found only 4 times altogether in SW. Uganda and Rwanda and of these only one was collected after 1907 K1 K3 K4 K5 K6 T2 T6 T7 U1 U2 U4

International Legume Database and Information Service

Conservation

Not Threatened

Ecology

Africa: Afromontane(upland) bushland and thicket., Afromontane grassland

Morphology General Habit

Perennial, Not climbing, Shrub

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

M. Thulin et al. Flora of Somalia, Vol. 1-4 [updated 2008] https://plants.jstor.org/collection/FLOS

Morphology General Habit

Shrub 1–4 m tall; young stems with appressed white hairs

Morphology Leaves Leaflets

Leaflets 9–15, elliptic, up to 18 x 10 mm, mucronate, glabrous or nearly so above, with white appressed hairs beneath

Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences

Racemes 2–3-flowered

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Corolla

Corolla usually dark reddish-brown, yellowish-green at the base, the keel almost black at the tip, 13–15 mm long

Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits

Pod often purplish or brownish, papery, 3–8 cm long including the 0.5–2.2 cm long stipe, 1.5–2.8 cm wide.

Distribution

N1, 2; Eritrea, Ethiopia, Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda

Ecology

Altitude range 1450–1900 m.