Sesbania javanica Miq.

A tall shrubby herb. It has a woody base. It grows 2-4 m tall. The leaves are compound. The leaves have leaflets along the stalk and one at the end. There are 10-30 pairs of leaflets. They are narrowly oblong and rounded at the ends. They are up to 2.5 cm long and 2-4 mm wide. There are 5-12 flowers in a group . These are 10 cm long. They are bright yellow with brown spots. They hang along stalks from the axils of leaves. The flowers are edible. The fruit is a straight pod that hangs down. It is 18-20 cm long by 4 mm wide. They are violet or brown. There are many seeds. They are round, shiny and 3 mm across.

A tropical plant. It is a marsh plant. It grows in swampy places.

The flowers are eaten. They can be eaten raw as a vegetable or dipped into flour then fried as fritters. The young leaves and fruit are cooked and eaten in times of food scarcity. The flowers give a yellow colouring to desserts such as sticky rice balls.

Can be grown by cuttings or seedlings. Seeds needs soaking.