Crotalaria poecilantha Polhill

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

Morphology General Habit

Procumbent perennial, with a woody rootstock and long trailing thinly appressed puberulous stems.

Morphology Leaves

Leaves shortly petiolate, mostly 3-foliolate, the uppermost often 1-foliolate; leaflets oblong-elliptic, up to 50 mm. long and 23 mm. wide, chartaceous, glabrous (except along midvein) and glossy above, sparsely puberulous with short stiff appressed hairs beneath; petiole 2–4 mm. long.

Morphology Leaves Stipules

Stipules subulate or linear-caudate, up to 5 mm. long.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences

Racemes terminal and lateral, pedunculate, up to 9–13 cm. long, with ± 6–10 laxly arranged flowers; bracts linear-caudate, up to 7 mm. long; bracteoles inserted on the upper part of the pedicel, linear, 2·5–5 mm. long.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Calyx

Calyx nearly as long as the keel or exceeding it, accrescent, up to 10–15 mm. long, densely covered with very short stiff appressed white hairs; lobes narrowly attenuate-triangular, up to 4 times as long as the tube.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Corolla

Standard sub-orbicular, bright yellow inside, purplish-brown and yellow flushed outside, conspicuously appressed puberulous; wings a little shorter than the keel; keel rounded about the middle, almost semiorbicular, with a distinct crest preceding the short incurved circumflexed beak, 12–13 mm. long.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits

Pod shortly stipitate, ellipsoid-clavate, ± 27 mm. long, 10 mm. across, brown tomentellous and ultimately glabrescent outside, spreading pubescent inside, up to ± 14-seeded.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Seeds

Mature seeds not seen.

Habitat

Brachystegia woodland; ± 1500m.

Distribution

T8 not known elsewhere