Desmanthus

Desmanthus
Desmanthus
Desmanthus pernambucanus
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
(unranked): Angiosperms
(unranked): Eudicots
(unranked): Rosids
Order: Fabales
Family: Fabaceae
Subfamily: Mimosoideae
Tribe: Mimoseae
Genus: Desmanthus
Willd.[1]
Type species
Desmanthus virgatus
(L.) Willd.
Species

See text.

Desmanthus is a genus of flowering plants in the subfamily Mimosoideae of the pea family, Fabaceae. It contains about 24 species of herbs and shrubs that are sometimes described as being suffruiticose and have bipinnate leaves. Desmanthus is closely related to Leucaena and in appearance is similar to Neptunia. Like Mimosa and Neptunia, Desmanthus species fold their leaves in the evening. They are native to Mexico and North, Central and South America.

Contents

Description

Desmanthus bicornutus
Desmanthus illinoensis seeds
Desmanthus pernambucanus
Desmanthus pubescens
Desmanthus virgatus and buffel grass
Desmanthus illinoensis

D. virgatus has a number of common names such as `hedge lucerne' in India, `little mimosa' in Brazil, `bundleflower' in the USA, `leucaena mini' in Indonesia, `dwarf koa', `dais' in Mexico,`donkey bean' and `desmanthus'.

The term "donkey bean" comes from Central America where Desmanthus is highly regarded as a fodder for donkeys which are valued domestic draught animals.

There are considerable differences in the descriptions of Desmanthus in the literature (see Bogdan 1977; Skerman 1977; National Academy of Science 1979; Allen & Allen 1981; Reid 1983; Hacker 1990). For example, Reid (1983) says that Desmanthus virgatus ranges from "leggy" plants in the humid tropics to compact bushes in the semi-arid zones to prostrate in the montane zones; Allen and Allen (1981) state that Desmanthus grows to 3 metres; Hacker (1990) states that D. virgatus is an erect shrub 1.3 metres tall. All these views illustrate the great diversity and polymorphism within the genus and between species.

In the United States, Illinois bundleflower (Desmanthus illinoensis) is the most widely distributed Desmanthus species. The root-bark, which accounts for half of the total weight of the root system, is reported to contain anywhere from 0% to 0.34% DMT and 0.11% N-Methyltryptamine. Alkaloid content is highly variable in this species.[2]

Likewise, root bark of Desmanthus leptolobus has been found to contain N,N-DMT and related tryptamines. While its only reported quantitative analysis was 0.14% (Appleseed), all instances of co-occurrence with D. illinoensis showed it to be noticeably stronger than D. illinoensis, according to co-thin layer chromatography of the root bark.[3]

Uses

In Australia three species of Desmanthus have been released as a pasture legume and many other accessions are being evaluated as pasture species for clay soils. The three released cultivars are:

  • Desmanthus virgatus Cultivar "Marc"(Accession number: CPI 78373) which is described as early flowering, decumbent to ascending, growing 30 to 60 cm tall and originates from Argentina.
  • Desmanthus leptophyllus Cultivar "Bayamo" (CPI 82285), mid season flowering, ascending type, 95–135 cm tall, from Cuba
  • Desmanthus pubescens Cultivar "Uman" (CPI 92803), late flowering, decumbent shrub, taller and wider spreading than Marc, 40–100 cm tall, from Mexico.

Species

  • Desmanthus acuminatus Benth.
  • Desmanthus balsensis J.L.Contr.
  • Desmanthus bicornutus S.Watson
  • Desmanthus brevipes B.L.Turner
  • Desmanthus cooleyi (Eaton) Trel.
  • Desmanthus covillei (Britton & Rose) Wiggins ex B.L.Turner
  • Desmanthus fruticosus Rose
  • Desmanthus glandulosus (B.L.Turner) Luckow
  • Desmanthus hexapetalus (Micheli) J.F.Macbr.
  • Desmanthus illinoensis (Michx.) MacMill. ex B.L.Rob. – Illinois Bundleflower
  • Desmanthus interior (Britton & Rose) Bullock
  • Desmanthus leptolobus Torr. & A.Gray
  • Desmanthus leptophyllus Kunth
  • Desmanthus obtusus S.Watson
  • Desmanthus oligospermus Brandegee
  • Desmanthus painteri (Britton & Rose) Standl.
  • Desmanthus paspalaceus (Lindm.) Burkart
  • Desmanthus pernambucanus (L.) Thell.
  • Desmanthus pringlei (Britton & Rose) F.J.Herm.
  • Desmanthus pubescens B.L.Turner
  • Desmanthus pumilus (Schltdl.) J.F.Macbr.
  • Desmanthus reticulatus Benth.
  • Desmanthus tatuhyensis Hoehne
  • Desmanthus velutinus Scheele
  • Desmanthus virgatus (L.) Willd.

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Look at other dictionaries:

  • Desmanthus — (D. Willd.), Pflanzengattung aus der Familie der Mimoseae Acacieae, 23. Kl 1. Ordn. L. Arten: D. cinereus, D. diffusus, u. m. sind, gleich den Mimosenarten, in Treibhäusern beliebt; D. natans, in stehenden Gewässern in Cochinchina mit langem… …   Pierer's Universal-Lexikon

  • Desmanthus — Desmanthus, zierliche, meist ostind. Sträucher, aus der Familie der Leguminosae, mit doppelt gefiederten, vielpaarigen und häufig sehr reizbaren Blättern, die bei der leisesten Berührung zusammenfallen; die Blüthchen bilden blaßgelbe sehr… …   Herders Conversations-Lexikon

  • Desmanthus —   Desmanthus …   Wikipedia Español

  • Desmanthus — noun genus of American herbs or shrubs with sensitive pinnate leaves and small whitish flowers • Syn: ↑genus Desmanthus • Hypernyms: ↑rosid dicot genus • Member Holonyms: ↑Papilionoideae, ↑subfamily Papilionoideae …   Useful english dictionary

  • Desmanthus — ID 26131 Symbol Key DESMA Common Name bundleflower Family Fabaceae Category Dicot Division Magnoliophyta US Nativity N/A US/NA Plant Yes State Distribution AL, AR, AZ, CO, DC, FL, GA, HI, IA, IL, IN, KS, KY, LA, MD, MN, MO, MS, NC, ND, NE, NM, NV …   USDA Plant Characteristics

  • Desmanthus bicornutus — Scientific classification Kingdom …   Wikipedia

  • Desmanthus leptolobus — Scientific classification Kingdom …   Wikipedia

  • Desmanthus illinoensis — Desmanthus illinoensis …   Wikipedia

  • Desmanthus virgatus — rykštinis ryšenis statusas T sritis vardynas apibrėžtis Mimozinių šeimos pašarinis augalas (Desmanthus virgatus), paplitęs Šiaurės ir Pietų Amerikoje. atitikmenys: lot. Desmanthus virgatus šaltinis Valstybinės lietuvių kalbos komisijos 2010 m.… …   Lithuanian dictionary (lietuvių žodynas)

  • Desmanthus ilinoensis — noun perennial herb of North American prairies having dense heads of small white flowers • Syn: ↑prairie mimosa, ↑prickle weed • Hypernyms: ↑herb, ↑herbaceous plant • Member Holonyms: ↑Desmanthus, ↑ …   Useful english dictionary

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