Crotalaria florida Welw. ex Baker

First published in D.Oliver & auct. suc. (eds.), Fl. Trop. Afr. 2: 30 (1871)
This species is accepted
The native range of this species is Tanzania to Angola. It is a perennial or subshrub and grows primarily in the seasonally dry tropical biome.

Descriptions

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

Morphology General Habit
Subshrub, several-stemmed from a woody rootstock, (0.1)0.5–1.2 m tall, developing numerous shortish flowering branches above; plants smelling of honey when dried; branches ribbed, densely strigulose with frequently brown-based hairs, sometimes with slightly longer hairs interspersed.
Morphology Leaves
Leaves mostly 3-foliolate, uppermost sometimes 1-foliolate; leaflets 5–22 × 2–10 mm, oblong-oblanceolate to oblong-obovate or obovate, slightly coriaceous, densely strigulose or strigose-puberulent beneath; petiole 3–15(20) mm long, channelled; stipules 0.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Primary racemes 2–5 cm long, ± laxly 6–10-flowered, with numerous shorter inflorescences developed on lateral branches and in the axils; bracts 1–3 mm long, linear-lanceolate, usually shorter than the pedicel; bracteoles on the pedicel or calyx, 0.5–4 mm long.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Calyx
Calyx 4–5 mm long, densely strigulose or strigose-puberulent; lobes acuminately or attenuately triangular, 0.8–2 times as long as the tube, often slightly involute, ± lanate inside (particularly the lower one).
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Corolla
Standard elliptic-obovate to obovate, yellow, sometimes lined brown, glabrous or nearly so outside; wings as long as the keel or a little shorter; keel 8–11 mm long, angular, with a narrow twisted beak, slightly incurved at the tip.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
Pods subsessile, 6–8 × 4–6 mm, ovoid-globose, pointed, strigose-puberulent, 2-seeded.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Seeds
Seeds 2–2.5 mm long, rounded-cordiform, smooth, dark, with a small aril.
[FZ]

International Legume Database and Information Service

Conservation
Not Threatened
Ecology
Africa: Zambezian woodland
Morphology General Habit
Perennial, Not climbing, Herb
[ILDIS]

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 rather bushy perennial herb or suffrutex, generally with several stems from the woody rootstock, up to 5–12 dm. tall, usually with many short almost leafless flowering branchlets towards the top.
Morphology Stem
Stems distinctly ribbed, appressed puberulous to densely spreading pubescent.
Morphology Leaves
Leaves 3-foliolate or sometimes with the uppermost 1-foliolate; leaflets oblanceolate to oblong-elliptic or obovate, up to 8–27 mm. long and 3–11 mm. wide, mostly rounded or retuse at the apex, ± subcoriaceous, glabrous or with scattered hairs above, appressed puberulous or pubescent beneath; petiole broadly grooved or narrowly winged, ± 2–12(–17) mm. long.
Morphology Leaves Stipules
Stipules absent.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Racemes terminal, somewhat lax, rather short, ± 2–8 cm. long, ± few-flowered, sometimes compound, always with other short almost leafless flowering shoots or clusters of flowers from many of the axils below; bracts lanceolate, ± 2–3(–4) mm. long; bracteoles variously inserted, linear or filiform, ± 0·5–4 mm. long.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Calyx
Calyx 3·5–6 mm. long, with the tube protracted on the lower side, densely appressed puberulous, sometimes with hairs dark brown at the base; upper lobes attenuate-triangular to narrowly deltoid, ± markedly acuminate, shorter to longer than the tube.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Corolla
Standard elliptic-obovate, yellow, often lined or flushed reddish-brown outside, glabrous or with a few hairs at the apex outside; wings shorter than the keel; keel bent at right-angles in the lower third, with a long narrow twisted beak slightly incurved at the very tip, (8–)9–11(–12) mm. long.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
Pod sessile, ovoid, slightly compressed laterally, 6–7 mm. long, 5–6 mm. in dorsiventral diameter, appressed puberulous or pubescent, 1–2-seeded.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Seeds
Seeds shortly oblong-ovate in outline, with a shallow hilum and well-developed aril, smooth, dark grey-green, tinged purplish.
[FTEA]

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