Indigofera linnaei

Botanical Description

Indigofera linnaei is a perennial plant with prostrate, sometimes ascending, much-branched stems that can become more or less woody, especially near the base, and persist. It can grow 20 - 90cm tall[ 266 Title Flora of China Publication Author Website http://flora.huh.harvard.edu/china/ Publisher Missouri Botanical Garden Press; St. Louis. Year 1994 ISBN Description An excellent, comprehensive resource in 25 volumes. In addition to the botanical information the flora also gives basic information on habitat and some uses. An on-line version is also available. , 372 Title Flowers of India Publication Author Website http://www.flowersofindia.net/ Publisher Year 0 ISBN Description A wed site of native Indian plants, plus cultivated and naturalized species. It has good quality photos and terse details on more than 3,000 species and cultivars. ]. The plant grows from a long taproot around 30cm long and 5mm wide[ 1496 Title A Revision of the Genus Indigofera (Leguminosae-Papilionoideae) in Southeast Asia Publication Blumea 30 (1984) 89-151 Author Kort I. de, Thijsse G. Publisher Year 1984 ISBN Description ]. The plant is harvested from the wild for local use as a medicine[ 317 Title Mansfeld's Database of Agricultural and Horticultural Plants Publication Author Website http://mansfeld.ipk-gatersleben.de/pls/htmldb_pgrc/f?p=185:3:4292127278597336 Publisher Year 0 ISBN Description Terse details of a huge range of useful plants. ]. In times of need, the plant is harvested from the wild for its seed which are an emergency source of food[ 1496 Title A Revision of the Genus Indigofera (Leguminosae-Papilionoideae) in Southeast Asia Publication Blumea 30 (1984) 89-151 Author Kort I. de, Thijsse G. Publisher Year 1984 ISBN Description ]. It causes however a disease of horses but is obviously suitable for feeding sheep. There are some further reports in the literature on species of Indigofera, mostly of subg. Indigofera, which had been or are being occasionally cultivated or recommended for cultivation. That is true e.g. for I. longiracemosa Boiv. ex Baill. in Bull. Soc. Linn. Paris 1 (1883) 399 (Madagascar, S India, E Africa), I. disperma L., Syst. nat. ed. 12 (1768) 232 (South America) and I. diphylla Vent., Choix pl. 5 (1804) 300, t. 30 (W Africa), which had been grown locally or sporadically as dye plants in Java resp. the Antilles or in W Africa. For soil conservation the cultivation has been reported in North America for I. miniata Ortega, Nov. pl. descr. dec. (1798) 98 (southern USA to Guatemala), in Japan for I. pseudo-tinctoria Matsum. in Bot. Mag., Tokyo 16 (1902) 62 (Japan, China) and has been recommended recently in the USA for I. leptosepala Nutt. in Torr. & Gray, Fl. N. Amer. 1 (1838) 298. As forage or green manure crops had been reported for Kenya I. schimperi Jaub. & Spach, Ill. pl. or. (1857) t. 484 (tropical and South Africa) and I. swaziensis Bolus in Trans. S. Afr. Phil. Soc. 16 (1906) 381 (South Africa), for Tanzania I. paniculata Pers., Syn. pl. 2 (1807) 325 (tropical Africa), for India I. linifolia (L.f.) Retz., Obs. bot. 4 (1786) 29 (NE Africa, S and SE Asia to Australia, subg. Sphaeridiophora Baker!). Other species recommended as forage crops or at least of potential importance for this purpose are I. sessiliflora DC., Prodr. 2 (1825) 228 (Sahel belt, Ethiopia, India), I. trifoliata L., Cent. Pl. 2 (1756) 29 (SE Asia to Australia), I. uniflora Buch.-Ham. ex Roxb., Fl. ind. ed. 2, 3 (1832) 374 (India) and I. medicaginea Welw. ex Baker in Oliv., Fl. trop. Afr. 2 (1871) 86 (tropical Africa)[ 317 Title Mansfeld's Database of Agricultural and Horticultural Plants Publication Author Website http://mansfeld.ipk-gatersleben.de/pls/htmldb_pgrc/f?p=185:3:4292127278597336 Publisher Year 0 ISBN Description Terse details of a huge range of useful plants. ].