Lespedeza texana Brill., texas bushclover. Perennial herb, with crooked taproot and caudex, not rosetted, (1—)several–stemmed at base, ascending to spreading, in range to 35 mm long; shoots with only cauline leaves, leaves of 2 sizes, short–hairy; belowground cataphylls cupped–deltate, 1 mm.
Stems several–angled, to 1 mm diameter, with ridge descending from each leaf, tough, internodes to 35 mm long, short–strigose with upward–pointing hairs.
Leaves helically alternate, pinnately 3–foliolate, dimorphic, petiolate with pulvinus, with stipules; stipules 2, attached to leaf base, linear to narrowly triangular–linear, 2.5—5+ mm long, green aging red–purple, upper surface with several raised veins, lower surface short–strigose, persistent; petiole in range < 5 mm long; rachis in range to 5 mm long; petiolule = pulvinus 0.5 mm long, short–hairy; blades of leaflets elliptic or oblong to obovate, 5—24 × 2.3—10 mm, terminal leaflet > lateral leaflets, tapered at base equal to oblique, entire, truncate to shallowly notched with short point at tip, pinnately veined with principal veins raised on lower surface, upper surface dull and glabrescent, lower surface pale green, soft–hairy.
Inflorescence raceme, axillary, 1—2–flowered, flowers paired or solitary with persistent tip of rachis, bracteate, short–strigose; peduncle at anthesis 20—25 mm long increasing to 90 mm long in fruit (surpassing foliage); bractlet subtending pedicel awl–shaped, 1—1.3 mm long, short–strigose with upward–pointing hairs, persistent; pedicel at anthesis 2—2.5 mm long, short–strigose, with 2 bracteoles at top, bracteoles appressed to calyx, lateral and opposite, awl–shaped, ± 1.5 × 0.25—0.3 mm, short–strigose, persistent.
Flower bisexual, bilateral, pealike (papiliaceous), ca. 2 mm across; calyx 5–lobed, 4.5 mm long; tube bell–shaped, 1.8 × 1.5 mm; lobes unequal, narrowly triangular, with narrowly membranous margins, lower lobe appressed to keel, 3 × 0.6—0.7 mm, lateral lobes ± 1.8 × 0.5—0.6 mm, upper lobes forked from midpoint, 2.1—2.4 × 1 mm, light green often tinged red; petals 5, clawed; banner ca. 7 mm long, claw cupped, ca. 1.3 mm long, white, limb roundish, ca. 6 × 4.5 mm, strongly folded, red–purple with radiating white lines from claw, glabrous; wings 2, claws linear, 1.6—1.7 mm long, limbs oblong, ca. 4.5 × 1.3 mm, at base white with backward–pointing basal lobe and mostly light purple, adherent to keel; keel of 2 partially fused petals along lower edge, claws ± 1.7 mm long, white, limbs 4.5—5 × 2 mm, > wings, white to light purple with deep purple inner surface only at tip, except at base fused to notched at tip; stamens 10, diadelphous (9 fused + 1 free), concealed in keel; filament sheet 4.5—5 mm long with free portions to 6.5 mm long, white, gently curved approaching tip, free filaments alternating short (1.5 mm) and longer (1.8 mm); anthers dorsifixed, dithecal, 0.3 and 0.4 mm long, pale orange, longitudinally dehiscent; pollen pale orange; pistil 1, stalked (stipe), 7.5—8 mm long, stalk ca. 1 mm long, pale green, and glabrous to glabrate; ovary superior, narrowly obovoid, ± 1.5 × 0.4—0.5 mm, green, short–strigose and overlapping white hairs, 1–chambered with 1 ovule attached to upper side; style curved upwarding approaching tip, < 1 mm longer than anthers, whitish; stigma minute, capitate.
Fruit pod (legume), indehiscent, 1–seeded, obovoid to broadly ellipsoid strongly flattened, 5—6.2 × ± 3.5 mm, with short beak (persistent style), margins raised, veiny and brown often purplish, short–strigose; persistent calyx with lobes appressed to pod.
Seed ± kidney–shaped, 2.6—3.2 × 1.6—2 × 0.9 mm, pale light green with scattered dark brown spots, with central hilum on edge.
A. C. Gibson