Swainsona

Plant Characteristics

Habit		shrub
Lifespan:	⌛	perennial

Cultivation

Scientific Names

Fabaceae >

Swainsona >

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Plant Characteristics

Origin:	✈	?

Cultivation

Exposure:	☼	?"?" is not in the list (sun, part-sun, shade, unknown) of allowed values for the "Exposure" property.
Water:	◍	?"?" is not in the list (wet, moist, moderate, dry, less when dormant) of allowed values for the "Water" property.

Scientific Names

Read about Swainsona in the Standard Cyclopedia of Horticulture

Swainsona (named for Isaac Swainson, an English horticulturist of the latter part of the eighteenth century). Often incorrectly spelled Swainsonia. Leguminosae. Glabrous or subappressed-pilose herbs or subshrubs, adapted to greenhouse culture or out-of-doors in the extreme South. Leaves odd-pinnate; lfts. many without stipels; stipules frequently herbaceous, base broad, rarely bristle-like: fls. blue-violet, purple, red, rarely white or yellowish, in axillary, usually peduncled racemes; calyx-teeth subequal or the 2 upper shorter; standard orbicular or reniform, spreading or reflexed; wings oblong, falcate or somewhat twisted; keel broad, incurved, obtuse; stamens 9 and 1; ovary sessile or stipitate, many-ovuled: legume ovoid or oblong, turgid or inflated, coriaceous or membranaceous.—About 30 species, Austral. Differs from Colutea chiefly in smaller stature and the large lateral stigma. By far the most popular kind is S. galegifolia var. albiflora. S. alba, Hort., is mentioned in the horticultural journals as a form with snow-white fls.; possibly only a variation of S. galegifolia. G.W. 3. pp. 353, 354; 11, p. 13. Var. grandiflora, Hort., is offered in the trade.—S. atrococcinea, Carr. Similar to S. Ferrandii but with larger lvs.: infl. large; peduncle slightly purplish: fls. purplish red, standard broad-spread, 2-lobed, slightly convex, with a white spot at base, keel brilliant red-violet. A horticultural form.—S. Ferrandii, Hort. Perennial, 12-20 in. high, much branched: lvs. compound, unevenly so; lfts. numerous, elliptic, apex rounded, glabrous: fls. in axillary racemes; peduncle short and arched; standard broadly expanded; wings much reduced; keel small. Probably of garden origin. Var. alba, Hort., has pure white fls. Var. carminea, Hort., has carmine-pink fls.—S. grandiflora var. alba, Hort., is offered in the trade, very probably is a form of S. galegifolia.—S. rosea var. grandiflora, Hort., is offered in the trade.—S. splendens, Hort., appears in the trade. CH The above text is from the Standard Cyclopedia of Horticulture. It may be out of date, but still contains valuable and interesting information which can be incorporated into the remainder of the article. Click on "Collapse" in the header to hide this text.

Cultivation

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References

• Standard Cyclopedia of Horticulture, by L. H. Bailey, MacMillan Co., 1963

External links

• w:Swainsona. Some of the material on this page may be from Wikipedia, under the Creative Commons license.
• Swainsona QR Code (Size 50, 100, 200, 500)