Fabaceae
Indigofera

Indigofera subulifera Welw. ex Baker

First published in D.Oliver & auct. suc. (eds.), Fl. Trop. Afr. 2: 96 (1871)
This species is accepted
The native range of this species is Congo to Tanzania and S. Tropical Africa. It is an annual and grows primarily in the seasonally dry tropical biome.

Descriptions

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
[AERP]

International Legume Database and Information Service

Conservation
Not Threatened
Ecology
Africa: Zambezian woodland
Morphology General Habit
Annual, Not climbing, Herb
[ILDIS]

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

Morphology General Habit
Annual up to 50 cm. tall; stems reddish, appressed pubescent with short soft white hairs.
Morphology Leaves
Stipules lanceolate-subulate, 3–4 mm. long; leaf-rhachis up to 2 cm. long, including a petiole of 1–2 mm., prolonged 1–2 mm. beyond lateral leaflets; dark filiform stipellae 0.3–1 mm. long sometimes present; leaflets 9–11 in the lower leaves, usually 7 in the leaves subtending inflorescences, elliptic, apiculate, up to 8 mm. long and 3 mm. wide, strigulose on both surfaces.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Racemes pubescent with short white hairs, up to 4 or 5 cm. long, including a peduncle of up to 8 mm.; bracts linear-lanceolate, 1.5 mm. long, caducous; pedicels spreading, 1–1.5 mm. long.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Calyx
Calyx white strigulose; tube 1 mm. long; lobes subulate, 2–2.4 mm. long.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Corolla
Corolla white pubescent outside; standard suborbicular, 4 mm. across.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Androecium Stamens Filaments
Filaments 4 mm. long.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Gynoecium Pistil
Ovary 1 mm. long, 2-ovulate; style 3.5 mm. long, curved through 50° 2.5 mm. above the base.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
Pod ± 5 mm. long by 1.5 mm. wide, ending in a subulate tip (the persistent style-base), white strigulose, 2-seeded; endocarp hardly spotted.
Habitat
Deciduous woodland, rocky gritty soil; 900 m.; rainfall perhaps 1000 mm.
Distribution
T4
[FTEA]

Sources

  • Angiosperm Extinction Risk Predictions v1

    • Angiosperm Threat Predictions
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0

  • Flora of Tropical East Africa

    • Flora of Tropical East Africa
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

  • Herbarium Catalogue Specimens

    • 'The Herbarium Catalogue, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Published on the Internet http://www.kew.org/herbcat [accessed on Day Month Year]'. Please enter the date on which you consulted the system.
    • Digital Image © Board of Trustees, RBG Kew http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

  • International Legume Database and Information Service

    • International Legume Database and Information Service (ILDIS) V10.39 Nov 2011
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

  • Kew Backbone Distributions

    • The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants 2025. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and https://powo.science.kew.org/
    • © Copyright 2023 World Checklist of Vascular Plants. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

  • Kew Names and Taxonomic Backbone

    • The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants 2025. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and https://powo.science.kew.org/
    • © Copyright 2023 International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0