Crotalaria cylindrocarpa DC.

Papilionaceae, Hutchinson and Dalziel. Flora of West Tropical Africa 1:2. 1958

Morphology General Habit

A branched shrubby herb, up to 6 ft. high

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers

Flowers yellow tinged red.

Leguminosae, J. B. Gillett, R. M. Polhill & B. Verdcourt. Flora of Tropical East Africa. 1971

Morphology General Habit

Perennial, generally with several stems ascending or spreading from a well-developed rootstock, up to 6 dm. tall, though sometimes much smaller.

Morphology Stem

Stem finely ribbed, pubescent with closely appressed or (especially in East Africa) mostly slightly spreading hairs.

Morphology Leaves

Leaves 3-foliolate; leaflets variable, oblanceolate-oblong to elliptic, rhombic or obovate-oblong, up to 20–70 mm. long, 8–23 mm. wide, glabrous above, thinly appressed pubescent to subglabrous beneath; petiole up to 15–35 mm. long.

Morphology Leaves Stipules

Stipules obliquely linear-lanceolate to falcate, 7–14 mm. long, 1·5–4 mm. wide, acuminate, markedly unequal-sided.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences

Racemes 3·5–23 cm. long, with few to many flowers rather closely arranged at least towards the top; bracts filiform, 2–5(–8) mm. long, pubescent, early caducous; bracteoles inserted on the receptacle or on the markedly ascending pedicel, filiform, 1–2 mm. long, caducous.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Calyx

Calyx 6–8(–10) mm. long, appressed puberulous; upper and lateral lobes on each side usually rather persistently coherent at the tips, triangular-subulate, longer than the tube.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Corolla

Standard ovate, yellow, marked reddish-brown or orange, glabrous or almost so outside; wings as long as the keel; keel abruptly rounded in the lower half with a straight untwisted tapering beak, (10–) 11·5–15 mm. long, conspicuously lanate-pubescent on the lateral surfaces towards the upper margin.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits

Pod cylindrical, abruptly contracted into the 1–4 mm. long stipe, 23–30 mm. long, 8–10 mm. across, thinly appressed puberulous, 18–26-seeded.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Seeds

Seeds oblong-reniform, ± 4 mm. long, with a very small aril, minutely granulate, pale yellow to brown.

Habitat

Grassland, persisting on cultivated ground; 900 to ±1200 m.

Distribution

K5 U1 U3 W. Africa

International Legume Database and Information Service

Conservation

Not Threatened

Ecology

Africa: Sudanian grasslands, Sudanian wooded grassland, Zambezian grassland, Zambezian wooded grassland, Guinea-Congolia/Sudania regional transition zone; grasslands., Guinea-Congolia/Sudania regional transitional zone; wooded grassland.

Morphology General Habit

Perennial, Not climbing, Herb

Extinction risk predictions for the world's flowering plants to support their conservation (2024). Bachman, S.P., Brown, M.J.M., Leão, T.C.C., Lughadha, E.N., Walker, B.E. https://nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/nph.19592

Conservation

Predicted extinction risk: not threatened. Confidence: confident