OF THE CAROLINAS & GEORGIA

Spermatophytes (seed plants): Angiosperms (flowering plants): Eudicots: Core Eudicots: Rosids: Fabids: Fabales

WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Desmodium perplexum   FAMILY Fabaceae   Go to FSUS key



SYNONYMOUS WITH PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Desmodium perplexum   FAMILY Fabaceae

INCLUDED WITHIN Floristic Synthesis of North America. BONAP (Kartesz, 2021)

Desmodium paniculatum var. paniculatum

SYNONYMOUS WITH Desmodium glabellum and D. perplexum (Fabaceae): a morphological reevaluation (Thomas, 2020)

Desmodium perplexum

SYNONYMOUS WITH Native & naturalized Leguminosae (Fabaceae) of the US (Isely, 1998)

Desmodium perplexum

INCLUDED WITHIN Manual of Vascular Plants of NE US & Adjacent Canada (Gleason & Cronquist,1991)

Desmodium glabellum

INCLUDED WITHIN Guide to the Vascular Plants of the Blue Ridge (Wofford, 1989)

Desmodium paniculatum var. dillenii

SYNONYMOUS WITH VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 098-26-023:

Desmodium perplexum   FAMILY Fabaceae

SYNONYMOUS WITH Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)

Meibomia dillenii

 

COMMON NAME:
Perplexing Tick-trefoil, Dillen's Tick-trefoil


         To see larger pictures, click or hover over the thumbnails.

image of Desmodium perplexum, Perplexing Tick-trefoil, Dillen's Tick-trefoil

USDA-NRCS PLANTS Database / Britton, N.L., and A. Brown. 1913    pnd_medi8_001_lvd

        

image of Desmodium perplexum, Perplexing Tick-trefoil, Dillen's Tick-trefoil

JK Marlow    jkm190618_9259

June    Greenville County    SC

Tall Pines Wildlife Management Area

image of Desmodium perplexum, Perplexing Tick-trefoil, Dillen's Tick-trefoil

JK Marlow    jkm170826_747

August    Spartanburg County    SC

Terminal leaflets narrowly ovate to broadly elliptic-ovate (most on the wider end of this range), per Weakley's Flora (2022).

image of Desmodium perplexum, Perplexing Tick-trefoil, Dillen's Tick-trefoil

JK Marlow    jkm170826_751

August    Spartanburg County    SC

image of Desmodium perplexum, Perplexing Tick-trefoil, Dillen's Tick-trefoil

JK Marlow    jkm170826_766

August    Spartanburg County    SC

Leaves mostly all the same size and not or little extending onto the flowering branches, per Weakley's Flora (2022).

image of Desmodium perplexum, Perplexing Tick-trefoil, Dillen's Tick-trefoil

JK Marlow    jkm170826_768

August    Spartanburg County    SC

image of Desmodium perplexum, Perplexing Tick-trefoil, Dillen's Tick-trefoil

JK Marlow    jkm120908_437

September    Greenville County    SC

image of Desmodium perplexum, Perplexing Tick-trefoil, Dillen's Tick-trefoil

JK Marlow    jkm120908_439

September    Greenville County    SC

image of Desmodium perplexum, Perplexing Tick-trefoil, Dillen's Tick-trefoil

JK Marlow    jkm120908_450

September    Greenville County    SC

Each side (from the isthmus to the broadest point) of ventral margin of most articles concave, per Weakley's Flora (2022).


click here to see other plants that look similar to this COMPARE loments of Desmodium species

image of Desmodium perplexum, Perplexing Tick-trefoil, Dillen's Tick-trefoil

JK Marlow    jkm120908_475

September    Greenville County    SC

Corollas mostly 6-9mm long, per Vascular Flora of the Carolinas (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968).


click here to see other plants that look similar to this COMPARE Beggar's Lice (Tick-trefoil) species

 

 

WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Desmodium perplexum   FAMILY Fabaceae

SYNONYMOUS WITH PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Desmodium perplexum   FAMILY Fabaceae

INCLUDED WITHIN Floristic Synthesis of North America. BONAP (Kartesz, 2021)
Desmodium paniculatum var. paniculatum

SYNONYMOUS WITH Desmodium glabellum and D. perplexum (Fabaceae): a morphological reevaluation (Thomas, 2020)
Desmodium perplexum

SYNONYMOUS WITH Native & naturalized Leguminosae (Fabaceae) of the US (Isely, 1998)
Desmodium perplexum

INCLUDED WITHIN Manual of Vascular Plants of NE US & Adjacent Canada (Gleason & Cronquist,1991)
Desmodium glabellum

INCLUDED WITHIN Guide to the Vascular Plants of the Blue Ridge (Wofford, 1989)
Desmodium paniculatum var. dillenii

SYNONYMOUS WITH VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 098-26-023:
Desmodium perplexum   FAMILY Fabaceae

SYNONYMOUS WITH Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Meibomia dillenii

 

Find by SCIENTIFIC NAME:

3465

Forb
Perennial

Habitat: Fields, woodland borders, hammocks, disturbed areas, per Weakley's Flora

Native to the Carolinas & possibly Georgia

Common (uncommon in GA Mountains & GA Piedmont) (rare in GA Coastal Plain)

map
CLICK HERE to see a map, notes, and images from Weakley's Flora of the Southeastern US.

Click here to see a map showing all occurrences known to SERNEC, a consortium of southeastern herbaria. (Zoom in to see more detail.)

LEAVES:
Odd-pinnately compound: 3 leaflets
Alternate

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 usually 2-4 broadly rhombic to triangular segments?

 

TO LEARN MORE about this plant, look it up in a good book!



 


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