Indigofera bainesii Baker

Species

Angiosperms > Fabales > Fabaceae > Indigofera

Characteristics

Bushy subshrub from a woody rootstock, or rigid, much-branched shrub 0.5-1 m tall. Stems ribbed, at first densely ± appressed silvery strigose with ± equally biramous hairs, becoming sparsely strigose and woody below/short-shoots sometimes present, stems yellowish-brown to reddish, pearl bodies largely restricted to leaf axils. Stipules 0.5-3 mm long, linear-attenuate or subulate, ± erect. Leaves pinnately 1-3-foliolate, leaf axis 0.5-2.5 mm long including petiole of 0-2 mm, prolonged 0-0.5 mm beyond lateral leaflets; stipels absent; terminal leaflet 4-14(18) x 1.5-8 mm, oblanceolate to cuneate-obovate, 2-4 times as long as wide, leaflets often folded, apex recurved, apiculate, rounded to obtuse, more sparsely strigose with appressed to slightly spreading, ± equally biramous hairs above, more densely and coarsely strigose below, biramous hairs of different sizes, midvein prominent below, impressed above, major lateral veins sometimes visible on upper surfaces, sharply ascending and curving towards apex. Raceme 0.3-1 cm long, equal to shorter than subtending leaf, including peduncle of 0.5-2 mm, densely 2-10-flowered; bracts 0.5-1 mm long, subulate, sub-persistent; pedicels 0.5-1 mm long, spreading. Calyx 1.5-2.5 mm long, ± densely strigose, lobes narrowly triangular, to lanceolate-attenuate, equal to twice length of tube. Corolla 5-7 mm long, dark pink to carmine-red; back of standard densely appressed whitish strigose, distal region of keel strigose, keel apex obtuse. Stamens 4-6 mm long. Style 1-1.5 mm long, bending to erect (or pointing straight forward) from apex of ovary, usually demarcated from ovary or cuspidate apex of developing pod by a swelling or loss of indumentum. Pod 5-22 x 1.8-2.2 mm, straight, 4-angled-cylindrical, spreading, sparsely to densely strigose, apex acute, style-base persistent forming a beak; endocarp with conspicuous tannin deposits. Seeds 4-10, 1.5-2 x 1-1.5 mm, quadrangular-cylindrical to globose, greenish to orange-brown, finely mottled, not pitted.
Life form perennial
Growth form shrub
Growth support free-standing
Foliage retention deciduous
Sexuality hermaphrodite
Pollination -
Spread -
Mature width (meter) -
Mature height (meter) 0.5 - 1.0
Root system -
Rooting depth (meter) -
Root diameter (meter) -
Flower color -
Blooming months -
Fruit color -
Fruiting months -
Nitrogen fixer rhizobia
Photosynthetic pathway -

Environment

Light -
Soil humidity -
Soil texture 5-6
Soil acidity -
Soil nutriment -
Hardiness (USDA) 8-12

Usage

Uses medicinal
Edible -
Therapeutic use -
Human toxicity -
Animal toxicity -

Cultivation

Mode -
Germination duration (days) 30 - 90
Germination temperacture (C°) 10
Germination luminosity -
Germination treatment soaking
Minimum temperature (C°) -
Optimum temperature (C°) -
Size -
Vigor -
Productivity -

Distribution

Indigofera bainesii world distribution map, present in Botswana, Namibia, South Africa, and Zimbabwe

Identifiers

LSID urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:499021-1
WFO ID wfo-0000190702
COL ID 3PLTF
BDTFX ID -
INPN ID -
Wikipedia (EN)
Wikipedia (FR)

Synonyms

Indigofera variabilis Indigofera bainesii