Spermatophytes (seed plants): Angiosperms (flowering plants): Eudicots: Core Eudicots: Rosids: Fabids: Fabales
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Desmodium obtusum
FAMILY
Fabaceae
Go to FSUS key
Dig deeper at SERNEC, a consortium of southeastern herbaria.
Learn more about Stiff Tick-trefoil from the Vascular Plants of North Carolina.
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Desmodium obtusum
FAMILY
Fabaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH Floristic Synthesis of North America. BONAP (Kartesz, 2021)
Desmodium marilandicum var. lancifolium
SYNONYMOUS WITH Native & naturalized Leguminosae (Fabaceae) of the US (Isely, 1998)
Desmodium obtusum
SYNONYMOUS WITH VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 098-26-015:
Desmodium obtusum FAMILY Fabaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH Britton & Brown Illus Flora of Northeast US & adjacent Canada (Gleason, 1952)
Desmodium rigidum
SYNONYMOUS WITH Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Meibomia rigida
COMMON NAME:
Stiff Tick-trefoil
To see larger pictures, click or hover over the thumbnails.
)
USDA-NRCS PLANTS Database / Britton, N.L., and A. Brown. 1913 pnd_meri_001_lvd
)
JK Marlow jkm200517_4966
May Transylvania County NC
DuPont State Forest
)
JK Marlow jkm200625_6084
June Transylvania County NC
DuPont State Forest
)
JK Marlow jkm190726_0178
July Transylvania County NC
DuPont State Forest
This species has among the smallest pods and segments of any in the genus, per Vascular Plants of North Carolina.
)
JK Marlow jkm190726_0179
July Transylvania County NC
DuPont State Forest
Loments similar to D. ciliare & D. marilandicum, with 2-3 rounded segments, per Leguminosae (Fabaceae), vol 3, part 2, Vascular flora of the southeastern United States (Isely, 1990).
COMPARE
loments of Desmodium species
)
JK Marlow jkm190726_0186
July Transylvania County NC
DuPont State Forest
Petioles of median leaves usually shorter than width of lateral leaflets, per Vascular Flora of the Carolinas (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968).
)
JK Marlow jkm190726_0189
July Transylvania County NC
DuPont State Forest
)
JK Marlow jkm190726_0253
July Transylvania County NC
DuPont State Forest
Leaflets fairly thick and rigid (in fact, formerly named D. rigidum), per Vascular Plants of North Carolina.
)
JK Marlow jkm190726_0258
July Transylvania County NC
DuPont State Forest
)
JK Marlow jkm190726_0275
July Transylvania County NC
DuPont State Forest
A fairly slender Desmodium, ranging to 2-3' tall, but with few branches, per Vascular Plants of North Carolina.
)
JK Marlow jkm190825_0941
August Transylvania County NC
DuPont State Forest
The terminal leaflet is usually elongate, per Native and Naturalized Leguminosae (Fabaceae) of the United States (Isely, 1998).
)
JK Marlow jkm190825_0943
August Transylvania County NC
DuPont State Forest
)
JK Marlow jkm190825_0952
August Transylvania County NC
DuPont State Forest
Corolla pink-purple (-white), 4.5-6mm long, per Leguminosae (Fabaceae), vol 3, part 2, Vascular flora of the southeastern United States (Isely, 1990).
)
JK Marlow jkm190825_0953
August Transylvania County NC
DuPont State Forest
)
JK Marlow jkm190825_0955
August Transylvania County NC
DuPont State Forest
Oops. A pod with four segments...
)
JK Marlow jkm200808_6917
August Transylvania County NC
DuPont State Forest
)
Bruce A. Sorrie bas_desmo_obtusum1
September Moore County NC
Inflorescence usually paniculate. Pedicels 4-17mm long, per Vascular Flora of the Carolinas (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968).
COMPARE
Beggar's Lice (Tick-trefoil) species
)
JK Marlow jkm180924_4884
September McCormick County SC
Parks Mill
Stems and petioles densely uncinate-pubescent, per Vascular Flora of the Carolinas (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968).
)
JK Marlow jkm180924_4887
September McCormick County SC
Parks Mill
Leaflets sparsely to densely short-pubescent and reticulate below, per Vascular Flora of the Carolinas (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968).
)
JK Marlow jkm220909_9823
September Transylvania County NC
DuPont State Forest
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Desmodium obtusum
FAMILY
Fabaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Desmodium obtusum
FAMILY
Fabaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Floristic Synthesis of North America. BONAP (Kartesz, 2021)
Desmodium marilandicum var. lancifolium
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Native & naturalized Leguminosae (Fabaceae) of the US (Isely, 1998)
Desmodium obtusum
SYNONYMOUS WITH
VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 098-26-015:
Desmodium obtusum
FAMILY
Fabaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Britton & Brown Illus Flora of Northeast US & adjacent Canada (Gleason, 1952)
Desmodium rigidum
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Meibomia rigida
2971
Forb
Perennial
Habitat: Longleaf pine sandhills and dry pine flatwoods, other dry pine woodlands, fields, woodland borders, disturbed areas, per Weakley's Flora
Native to the Carolinas & Georgia
Common
CLICK HERE to see a map, notes, and images from Weakley's Flora of the Southeastern US.
LEAVES:
Odd-pinnately compound: 3 leaflets
Alternate
Stipules soon deciduous.
Stipels persistent.
FLOWER:
Summer/Fall
Rose-purplish
Bilaterally symmetrical
2-lipped calyx
5-parted papilionaceous corolla
10 stamens, diadelphous, 9 and 1
Superior ovary
Flowers in terminal panicles
FRUIT:
Summer/Fall
Loment with 1-3 rounded segments
TO LEARN MORE about this plant, look it up in a good book!
- Forest Plants of the Southeast and Their Wildlife Uses (Miller & Miller, 2005) p052
- Wildflowers of the Southern Mountains (Smith, 1998) p081
If a search such as "Carex leptalea var. leptalea" doesn't deliver the results you want, try "Carex leptalea".
Or, to minimize chances of a misspelling, try just "Carex le".
Less is more: If "pencil flower" doesn't deliver the results you want, try "pencil".