Fabaceae
Sesbania

Sesbania sesban (L.) Merr.

First published in Philipp. J. Sci., C 7: 234 (1912)
This species is accepted
The native range of this species is Tropical & S. Africa, Arabian Peninsula, Indian Subcontinent. It is a shrub or tree and grows primarily in the seasonally dry tropical biome.

Descriptions

IUCN Red List of Threatened Species https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/185456/13560631

Conservation
LC - least concern
[IUCN]

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]

M. Thulin et al. Flora of Somalia, Vol. 1-4 [updated 2008] https://plants.jstor.org/collection/FLOS

Morphology General Habit
Shrub or small tree, 1–7 m tall; young stems usually ± pubescent
Morphology Leaves
Leaf-rhachis 3–12 cm long including a short petiole
Morphology Leaves Leaflets
Leaflets 20–50, linear-oblong, up to 23 x 5 mm, glabrous or almost so above, ± pubescent beneath at least at the margins
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Racemes 4–20-flowered, up to 15 cm long including a peduncle of up to 4 cm
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Calyx
Calyx c. 5 mm long; lobes broad, acuminate, 0.5–1 mm long
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Corolla
Blade of standard 13–14 x 18–21 mm, cordate at the base; claw 4 mm long; appendages with free tips (1.5–)2–5 mm long
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Androecium Stamens Filaments
Filament-sheath (9–)12–13(–17) mm long
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Gynoecium Style
Style glabrous, c. 5 mm long
Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
Pod up to 20(–30) x 0.4 cm, thicker at the centre than at the margin, 20–40-seeded.
Note
Var. sesban, cultivated in Egypt and Sudan, is probably native in S Asia, var. zambesiaca Gillett occurs in S tropical Africa, and subsp. punctata (DC.) Gillett from Senegal to Sudan.
[FSOM]

International Legume Database and Information Service

Conservation
Not Threatened
Ecology
Africa: Lake Victoria regional mosaic; freshwater swamp and aquatic vegetation, Zambezian freshwater swamp and aquatic vegetation, Sudanian freshwater swamp and aquatic vegetation, Somalia-Masai freshwater swamp and aquatic vegetation
Morphology General Habit
Perennial, Not climbing, Shrub/Tree
Vernacular
Chittakatti, Common Sesban, Egyptian Rattle Pod, Sesbania
[ILDIS]

Uses

Use
Domestic, Environmental, Fibre, Food and Drink, Forage, Medicine, Wood
[ILDIS]

Sources

  • Angiosperm Extinction Risk Predictions v1

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

  • Flora of Somalia

    • Flora of Somalia
    • 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/

  • IUCN Categories

    • IUCN Red List of Threatened Species
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/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

  • Kew Science Photographs

    • Copyright applied to individual images

  • Plants and People Africa

    • Common Names from Plants and People Africa http://www.plantsandpeopleafrica.com/
    • © Plants and People Africa http://www.plantsandpeopleafrica.com http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/