Tephrosia virginiana | |
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Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Clade: | Angiosperms |
Clade: | Eudicots |
Clade: | Rosids |
Order: | Fabales |
Family: | Fabaceae |
Subfamily: | Faboideae |
Genus: | Tephrosia |
Species: | T. virginiana |
Binomial name | |
Tephrosia virginiana | |
Synonyms [2] | |
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Tephrosia virginiana, also known as goat-rue, goat's rue, [3] catgut, [3] rabbit pea, [3] Virginia tephrosia, [3] hoary pea, [4] and devil's shoestring [5] is a perennial dicot in family Fabaceae. The plant is native to central and eastern North America.
This subshrub is low and bushy, growing to 60 centimetres (2 ft), but more often shorter. Its leaves are alternate and compound, usually with 8 to 15 pairs of narrow, oblong leaflets. [4] Soft white hairs on the leaves and the stem give them a silvery, or hoary, appearance. [6]
The flowers look similar to other flowers in the pea family and are bi-colored, with a pale yellow or cream upper petal (the standard), and pink petals on the bottom (the keel and wings). [5] The flowers are grouped into clusters at the top of the stems and bloom from May to August. The seed pods that form after the flowers bloom are small, approximately 5 centimetres (2 in) long. [4]
The roots are long and stringy, which is probably the source of the common names catgut and devil's shoestrings. [5]
This plant prefers acidic soils, in part to full sun. [7] It grows throughout the Midwest, New England and southeastern United States. [8] Not easy to propagate because of the relationship it has with the acid soil it needs, [9] this plant can be found in sand savannas, open woods and glades, prairies and rocky soils. [4]
All tissues of this plant are toxic (containing rotenone), and should not be eaten by people or livestock. Crushed stems were previously used as a fish poison. [10]
While ranked as secure rangewide by NatureServe, [1] T. virginiana has been listed as an endangered species in Canada under Schedule 1 of the Species at Risk Act since 2003. [11] Only two populations exist within black oak savanna and black oak woodland in Ontario. [11]
According to James Mooney, Cherokee Indian women used to wash their hair in a decoction made from its roots to prevent their hair from breaking or falling out. [12]
Solanum carolinense, the Carolina horsenettle, is not a true nettle, but a member of the Solanaceae, or nightshade family. It is a perennial herbaceous plant, native to the southeastern United States, though its range has expanded throughout much of temperate North America. The plant is an invasive in parts of Europe, Asia, Africa and Australia. The stem and undersides of larger leaf veins are covered with prickles.
Yucca filamentosa, Adam's needle and thread, is a species of flowering plant in the family Asparagaceae native to the southeastern United States. Growing to 3 metres tall, it is an evergreen shrub valued in horticulture.
Ageratina altissima, also known as white snakeroot, richweed, or white sanicle, is a poisonous perennial herb in the family Asteraceae, native to eastern and central North America. An older binomial name for this species is Eupatorium rugosum, but the genus Eupatorium has undergone taxonomic revision by botanists, and some species once included in it have been moved to other genera.
Euphorbia maculata, known as spotted spurge, prostrate spurge, milk purslane, or spotted sandmat, is a fast-growing annual plant in the family Euphorbiaceae. It is native to North America, where it is generally considered a common weed, it can be found in disturbed soils such as garden beds, along railroad tracks, and in the cracks of sidewalks. It has become a common introduced species throughout the world, including Europe, Japan, Korea, Australia, and New Zealand.
Hypoxis hirsuta, commonly known as common goldstar, common star-grass, eastern yellow stargrass, yellow star grass, or yellow star flower, is a perennial ornamental plant in the family Hypoxidaceae. Sometimes this plant is placed in the family Amaryllidaceae or the family Liliaceae. The species is native to the United States, Canada, and northeastern Mexico.
Impatiens pallida, with the common names pale jewelweed, pale touch-me-not, or yellow jewelweed, is a flowering annual plant in the family Balsaminaceae native to Canada and the United States. It grows in moist to wet soils, generally alongside the closely related Impatiens capensis, producing flowers from midsummer through fall.
Echinacea simulata, commonly called wavy leaf purple coneflower, glade coneflower, or prairie purple coneflower, is a species of perennial flowering plant in the family Asteraceae. It is native to the east-central states of the United States. Its natural habitat is dry, calcareous, open areas such as barrens and woodlands.
Rosa carolina, commonly known as the Carolina rose, pasture rose, or prairie rose, is a perennial shrub in the rose family native to eastern North America. It can be found in nearly all US states and Canadian provinces east of the Great Plains. It is common throughout its range and can be found in a wide variety of open habitats, from thickets and open woods to roadsides and along railroads.
Tephrosia is a genus of flowering plants in the family Fabaceae. It is widespread in both the Eastern and Western Hemisphere, where it is found in tropical and warm-temperate regions.
Lithospermum canescens, or the hoary puccoon is a perennial herb endemic to eastern North America. The plant grows in a variety of habitats. It has golden yellow flowers which bloom from April to May.
Tradescantia virginiana, the Virginia spiderwort, is a species of flowering plant in the family Commelinaceae. It is the type species of the genus Tradescantia, native to the eastern United States. Common names include Virginia spiderwort, common spiderwort, lady’s tears, and spider lily.
Iliamna bakeri is an uncommon species of flowering plant in the mallow family known by the common names Baker's globe mallow and Baker's wild hollyhock.
Amorpha canescens, known as leadplant, downy indigo bush, prairie shoestring, or buffalo bellows, is a small, perennial semi-shrub in the pea family (Fabaceae), native to North America. It has very small purple flowers with yellow stamens which are grouped in racemes. Depending on location, the flowers bloom from late June through mid-September. The compound leaves of this plant appear leaden due to their dense hairiness. The roots can grow up to 5 m (16 ft) deep and can spread up to 1 metre radially. This plant can be found growing in well-drained soils of prairies, bluffs, and open woodlands.
Ribes cereum is a species of currant known by the common names wax currant and squaw currant; the pedicellare variety is known as whisky currant. The species is native to western North America.
Castilleja sessiliflora is a species of flowering plant in the family Orobanchaceae known by the common names downy Indian paintbrush and downy paintedcup. It is native to the Great Plains of North America from southern Canada, through the central United States, to northern Mexico. It occurs as far west as the eastern slopes of the Rocky Mountains.
Orbexilum pedunculatum, commonly known as Sampson's snakeroot, is a species of flowering plant in the legume family. It is native primarily to the Southeastern United States where it is found in prairies and savannas, often in acidic soil. It is a perennial that produces racemes of flowers in early summer.
Lespedeza virginica, known as slender bush clover or slender lespedeza, is a species of flowering plant native to much of the United States, as well as Ontario, Canada, and Nuevo León, Mexico. It is a member of the bean family, Fabaceae.
Verbena stricta, also known as hoary verbena or hoary vervain, is a small purple wildflower native to a large region of the central United States.
Rosa setigera, commonly known as the climbing rose, prairie rose, and climbing wild rose, is a species of shrub or vine in the Rosaceae (rose) family native to central and eastern North America.
Tephrosia onobrychoides, commonly called multi-bloom hoary pea, is a species of plant in the pea family that is native to Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Mississippi, and Alabama in the United States of America.