LESPEDEZA 



LESPEDEZA 



1845 



BB. Fls. purple or violet, or some of them apetalous. 

 c. Peduncles slender. 



3. viplacea, Pers. Two to 3 ft., only sparsely leafy 

 and slightly pubescent: Ifts. broad-oval or oblong: 

 fls. small, in a loose cluster which is on a stalk usually 

 longer than the Ivs.: pod ovate. Dry places N. H., 

 west and south. 



4. Nuttallii, Darl. Two to 4 ft., villous: Ifts. oval, 

 oblong or nearly orbicular: fl. -clusters dense or even 

 capitate, the stalk mostly exceeding the Ivs.: 



pod oval. New England, west and south, in dry 

 soil. 



cc. Peduncles nearly or quite wanting. 



5. Stftvei, Nutt. Mostly unbranched, 2-4 ft., 

 very leafy, velvety-pubescent : petioles very 

 short; Ifts. elliptic, firm, woolly or velvety both 

 sides or at least underneath: fls. in nearly 

 sessile, axillary clusters or heads. Vt., south and 

 west. 



6. frutescens, Brit. (L. Stuvei var. intermedia, 

 Wats.). Less pubescent or almost glabrous: 

 petioles mostly longer; Ifts. oval or oblong: clus- 

 ters very short-stalked. Maine, south and west. 



AA. Oriental lespedeza, grown for forage in the 

 S.: of trailing habit: stipules and fl.-bracts 

 conspicuous. 



7. striata, Hook. & Arn. JAPAN CLOVER. 

 HOOPKOOP. Annual, somewhat pubescent, de- 

 cumbent or erect, slender: Ivs. small and very 

 numerous, the Ifts. oblong or qbovate, and the 

 petioles very short: fls. small, pink or purple, in 

 axillary clusters. China and Japan. The date 

 of introduction to this country is not known ; it 

 was collected in Georgia in 1846. It is now 

 extensively naturalized south of Washington and 

 the Ohio River, growing on nearly all kinds of 

 land. On light lands it makes dense mats, but 

 on heavy lands grows 18-24 in. high. It is a 

 good pasture- and hay-plant, and is useful for 

 plowing under as a green-manure. It thrives on 

 land which is indifferently prepared. Seed is 

 sown early in spring, at the rate of 15-25 Ibs. 

 to the acre. It often yields 2 tons and more of 

 hay to the acre. For pasturage in the S., it is 

 sometimes sown with oats in the autumn'. 



AAA. Oriental lespedezas, grown as ornamental 

 plants for the fls.: erect: stipules and fl.-bracts 

 small: perennials. 



8. bicolor, Turcz. Fig. 2134. Shrub, with slen- 

 der branches, becoming 6-10 ft. tall, slender and 

 graceful, glabrous: Ivs. on thin wiry stalks, mostly longer 

 than the glabrous blades; Ifts. oval to round-obovate, 

 rounded at the apex, the terminal one 1-2 in. long: fls. 

 small, purple, in simple or compound racemes, which 

 surpass the Ivs.: pod J^in. long, somewhat pubescent. 

 Japan. G.F. 5:114 (where L. bicolor and L. Sieboldii 

 are contrasted by J. G. Jack, and drawn by Faxon, and 

 here reduced in Figs. 2134, 2135). Hardy as far north 

 as Boston, blooming in July and seeding freely. A 

 white-fld. variety is advertised. 



9. Sieboldii, Miq. (Desmbdium penduliflbrum, 

 Oudem. L. racembsa, Dipp. L. formbsa, Koehne. L. 

 bicolor var. Sieboldii, Maxim.). Fig. 2135. Herb (shrub 

 in warm regions), throwing up strong, wiry shoots 

 each year from the crown: sts. angled, reddish or 

 brown, hairy (at least above) : Ivs. dull above and light- 

 colored and hairy beneath, the petiole usually some- 

 what shorter than the blade; Ifts. elliptic-oblong- 

 pointed: fls. twice larger than in the last (nearly J^in. 

 long), rose-purple, drooping in very numerous long 

 racemes, which at the top of the plant are panicled: 

 pod nearly or quite l /%a\. long, pubescent. Japan. 



G.F. 5:115. Gng. 1:23. R.H. 1873:210. J.H. III. 30: 

 15. G.C. II. 20:749. F.S. 18:1888. B.M. 6602 and 

 Mn. 7, p. 69 (as L. bicolor). Blooms in Sept. and 

 hardy in Cent. New England. A very desirable late- 

 blooming plant, making a large specimen with age. 

 Does not often seed in the N. 



10. japonica, Bailey (L. Sieboldii var. albiflbra, 

 Schneid. Desmbdium japonicum, Hort., not Miq.). 

 Very like L. Sieboldii and perhaps a form of it, but 

 blooms a week or two 

 later, has very numerous 

 pure-white fls., much lighter 

 colored herbage, usually 

 nearly glabrous Ivs. and 

 sts., the Ifts. broader and 



2135. Lespedeza Sieboldii. ( X 1 A) 



less pointed. Hardy as the last, and seems to seed 

 more freely in the N. 



Other Japanese and Chinese lespedezas may be expected to 

 appear in the trade. See Franchet, R. H. 1890, pp. 225-227, for an 

 account of W. China ornamental species, with picture of L. Dela- 

 cayi, Franch., which grows 3-6 ft. high, with elliptic obtuse Ifts., 

 and deep violet to purplish black fls. in a terminal panicle. 

 L. cyrtobdtrya, Miq. Shrub, to 6 ft. or more, glabrous or some- 

 what pubescent, with the habit of L. bicolor but less handsome: 

 Ivs. of the shoots long-stalked, oval to oval-oblong, rounded or 

 slightly emarginate at the apex, 1-1 J^ in. long, the middle 1ft. long- 

 stalked: Ivs. of the lateral flowering branchlets short-stalked, 

 crowded and much smaller; Ifts. all short-stalked, oval, emarginate, 

 J^-94in. long: fls. purple, J^in. long, in dense axillary clusters or 

 racemes not exceeding Jiin. length. Japan. L. macrocdrpa, Bunge 

 (Campylobotrys macrocarpa, Rehd. Campylobotrys chinensis, 

 Bunge). Shrub, to 6 ft.: Ivs. long-stalked; Ifts. oval to oblong, 

 emarginate, glabrous above, silky-villous below, Ji-1 Yi in. long, 

 the middle one long-stalked: fls. purple, J^in. long, slender-stalked 

 in axillary many-fld. stalked racemes to 3 in. long: pods glabrous, 

 more than }^in. long. N. and Cent. China. L. sericea, Miq. Suf- 

 fruticose, to 3 ft. high: Ivs. crowded, rather short-stalked; Ifts. 

 short-stalked, linear-oblong to linear, rounded at the apex, J^-54 

 in. long, strigose beneath, minutely so above: fls. white, nearly 

 sessile, Kin. long, in axillary dense clusters or in dense and short 

 leafy racemes to 1 in. long: pod little over 1 line long. China, 



Japan - L. H. B. 



