Putnam Park Wildflowers


Flower ID: IMG_4664.JPG-09-11-2022
Flower name (scientific): Chamaecrista fasciculata (André Michaux) Greene PY: 1897. Pronunciation guide: (phonetic spelling) kam-ee-KRIS-ta fa-sik-yoo-LAY-tuh
Flower name (common): Partridge Pea
Family name (common): Pea
Family name (scientific): Fabaceae
Scientific name origin:
     Genus: Genus name comes from the Greek words chamae meaning low growth and crista meaning crested.
    Specific epithet: From the Latin for grouped or clustered together in bundles. The latter may refer to the bundled nerve fibers that lead to the leaflet sensitivity to touch.
Common name origin: The name may arise from the fact that the seeds of the plant are an important winter food source for game birds.
Flower description:
     Size: 0.7 to 1.5 inches (1.8 to 3.8 cm)
     Petal count: 5
     Color: yellow
     Other: flower arrangement, Raceme
Plant description:
     Size: 4 to 36 inches (10 to 91 cm)
     Stem hairy: pubescent to glabrous
     Other:
Leaf description: attachment is alternate, type is compound
     Size: Leaflets are about 1 to 2 cm long and up to about 8 mm wide.
     Color: medium greeen
     Hairy: pubescent
     Other: Shape: leaf, even-pinate (MP), leaflet oblong (IL)
Origin (native, introduced, invasive): Native
Status (common, uncommon, threatened, rare): Uncommon
Bloom time (typical): July to September
Cycle (annual, biennial, perennial): Annual
Habitat: Fields, prairies, savannas, meadows, open woods, disturbed areas, roadsides, sun or semi-shade, dry to mesic.
Fruit: Legumes about 3 to 6 cm in length, green turing brown at maturity, flattened.
Seed: Dark brown to blackish, 3 to 4 mm long and 2 to 2.5 mm wide , approximately rectangular in shape.
Importance to wildlife:
Similar species (if any): Chamaecrista nictitans (Small-flowered Partridge-pea, Sensitive Partridge Pea) has a resemblance to Chamaecrista fasciculata. The former species is not recorded in the Flora of Wisconsin database, but the USDA indicates that it has been found in Wisconsin. The flowers of Chamaecrista nictitans are about 8 to 10 mm in diameter, whereas the flowers of Chamaecrista fasciculata are approximately 25 to 30 mm in diameter.
Ethnobotany: No recoreded uses by tribes from Wisconsin. The Cherokee used the root to prepare a stimulant and the Seminole utilized the plant to treat nausea (Moerman, p. 151, 1998).
Latitude: 44.796423
Longitude: -91.525568
Altitude: 250.70
Distribution: In Wisconsin: (Buffalo, Columbia, Crawford, Dane, Dunn, Eau Claire, Grant, Green, Jackson, Juneau, La Crosse, Pepin, Pierce, Racine, Richland, Rock, Sauk, St. Croix, Trempealeau, Vernon, Waupaca) Click here for distribution map
In US: (AL, AR, CT, DC, DE, FL, GA, IA, IL, IN, KS, KY, LA, MA, MD, MI, MN, MO, MS, NC, NE, NJ, NM, NY, OH, OK, PA, RI, SC, SD, TN, TX, VA, WI, WV) Click here for distribution map
In Canada:
References:
Synonym(s):
Basionym: Cassia fasciculata Michx. in Fl. Bor.-Amer. 1: 262 (1803).
Homotypic Synonym(s): POWO lists 1 homotypic synonym for this species.
Heterotypic Synonym(s): POWO lists 49 heterotypic synonyms for this species.
Autonym: na
Wetland Status (NC): FACU
Wetland Status (MW): FACU