Mimosa is a genus of about 600 species of herbs and shrubs, in the mimosoid clade of the legume family Fabaceae. Species are native to the Americas, from North Dakota to northern Argentina, and to eastern Africa as well as the Indian subcontinent and Indochina. The generic name is derived from the Greek word μῖμος (mimos), 'actor' or 'mime', and the feminine suffix -osa, 'resembling', suggesting its 'sensitive leaves' which seem to 'mimic conscious life'.
The Mimosoideae are a traditional subfamily of trees, herbs, lianas, and shrubs in the pea family (Fabaceae) that mostly grow in tropical and subtropical climates. They are typically characterized by having radially symmetric flowers, with petals that are twice divided (valvate) in bud and with numerous showy, prominent stamens.
Abarema is a neotropical genus in the family Fabaceae. It is native to Brazil, Cuba, and Venezuela. Most of the species can be found in the Amazon Basin and the Guyana Highlands. They have a deep-green fernlike foliage, with bipinnately compound leaves.
Calliandra is a genus of flowering plants in the pea family, Fabaceae, in the mimosoid clade of the subfamily Caesalpinioideae. It contains about 140 species that are native to tropical and subtropical regions of the Americas.
Sabicu wood or sabicu is the wood of at least two species of the genus Lysiloma. Lysiloma sabicu (L.) Benth. occurs sparingly in the Bahamas, Jamaica, Haiti and the Dominican Republic, and Cuba. It was named by George Bentham (1800-1884) from a Cuban specimen examined in 1854. Bentham went on to identify a second species, Lysiloma latisiliquum (L.) Benth., which grows best in the Bahamas. The latter is commonly known as 'wild tamarind' or 'false tamarind'. The wood of both species is similar, being mid-brown in colour, sometimes with a reddish hue, heavy hard and durable. Some timber is well figured, but most relatively plain. The wood has been used in construction, shipbuilding and in furniture making, although its weight is a distinct drawback for the latter purpose. The stairs of The Crystal Palace in London, in which The Great Exhibition of 1851 was held, were made of sabicu due to its durability. Despite the enormous traffic that passed over them, the wood at the end was found to be little affected by wear.
Senna, the sennas, is a large genus of flowering plants in the legume family. This diverse genus is native throughout the tropics, with a small number of species in temperate regions. The number of species is estimated to be from about 260 to 350. The type species for the genus is Senna alexandrina. About 50 species of Senna are known in cultivation.
Chamaecrista is a genus of flowering plants in the pea family, Fabaceae, subfamily Caesalpinioideae. Members of the genus are commonly known as sensitive pea. Several species are capable of rapid plant movement. Unlike the related genera Cassia and Senna, members of Chamaecrista form root nodules.
Chloroleucon is a genus of flowering plants in the family Fabaceae. It contains 11 species native to the tropical Americas, ranging from Mexico through Central America, the Caribbean, and South America to northern Argentina. Some authorities consider it part of the genus Albizia. Its name is derived from the Greek words χλωρóς (chloros), meaning "green," and λευκός (leukos), meaning "white."
Hydrochorea is a genus of flowering plants in the family Fabaceae. It includes 11 species native to Central and South America and west and west-central Africa. It belongs to the mimosoid clade of the subfamily Caesalpinioideae.
Macrosamanea is a genus of flowering plant in the legume family, Fabaceae. It includes 11 species of trees and shrubs native to northern South America. The genus is most diverse and numerous in the Amazon Basin, extending into the Orinoco basin and the Guianas. Typical habitat is tropical rain forest, mostly riparian and seasonally-flooded. Two species are native to seasonally-inundated wooded grassland (savanna) on sandy soils. The genus belongs to the mimosoid clade of the subfamily Caesalpinioideae.
Pithecellobium is a genus of flowering plants in the family Fabaceae. It includes approximately 23 species from the tropical Americas, ranging from Mexico to Peru and northern Brazil, including the Caribbean Islands and Florida.
Zygia is a genus of flowering plants in the family Fabaceae. It includes 60 species of tres and shrubs native to the tropical Americas, from Southern Mexico and Cuba to northern Argentina. Typical habitats are tropical forest and coastal zones, generally below 900 meters elevation with a few species extending up to 2800 meters. It belongs to the mimosoid clade of the subfamily Caesalpinioideae.
Punjuba is a genus in the family Fabaceae. It is native to Costa Rica, as well as to western South America.
Samanea is a genus of flowering plants in the family Fabaceae. It includes four species of trees native to the tropical Americas, ranging from Belize to Paraguay, and to the Democratic Republic of the Congo in central Africa. Habitats include tropical moist evergreen and seasonally-dry deciduous forest, woodland, and wooded grassland. It belongs to the mimosoid clade of the subfamily Caesalpinioideae. The type species is Samanea saman from South America.
Senegalia is a genus of flowering plants in the family Fabaceae. It belongs to the Mimosoid clade. Until 2005, its species were considered members of Acacia. The genus was considered polyphyletic and required further division, with the genera Parasenegalia and Pseudosenegalia accepted soon after.
Pityrocarpa is a genus of flowering plants in the family Fabaceae. It includes seven species of shrubs and small trees native to the tropical Americas, including western and southeastern Mexico, Guatemala and El Salvador, Venezuela and Guyana, Bolivia, and eastern Brazil. Native habitats include tropical coastal rain forest, gallery forest, secondary forest, woodland, wooded grassland (Cerrado), and thorn scrub (Caatinga). It belongs to the mimosoid clade of the subfamily Caesalpinioideae.
Abarema alexandri is a species of plant of the genus Abarema in the family Fabaceae. It is endemic to Jamaica, where it can be found in woodland or thicket on limestone soils.
Jupunba is a genus in the family Fabaceae. It is native to region from South Mexico extending to tropical America.
Pseudalbizzia is a genus of flowering plants in the pea family (Fabaceae). It includes 17 species which are native to the tropical Americas, from Mexico to northern Argentina.
