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1 Leaves pinnately 3-foliolate. |
2 Stem pubescence simple, pilose and spreading |
2 Stem pubescence of T-shaped (medifixed) hairs, white, appressed |
1 Leaves odd- pinnately compound, with 5+ leaflets. |
3 Leaflets borne alternately or irregularly on the rachis; prostrate or ascending herbs. |
4 Stipules subulate, < 1.5 mm wide; legumes divergent to deflexed, spaced on the rachis; flowers 6-10 per inflorescence |
4 Stipules deltate to lanceolate, 2-3 mm wide; legumes deflexed, crowded on the rachis; flowers many per inflorescence. |
5 Staminal tube (3.5-) 4-5 mm long, distinctly exceeding the calyx; leaves with 9-11 leaflets; leaflets 2.5-5× as long as wide; legumes dark brown, sharply deflexed, curving slightly inwards towards the rachis; infructescence 10-23 cm long |
5 Staminal tube 3-3.5 (-5) mm long, about as long as the calyx; leaves with 5-8 leaflets; leaflets 1.2-2.5× as long as wide; legumes tan, deflexed to spreading, straight; infructescence < 10 cm long |
3 Leaflets borne opposite on the rachis; mat-forming or ascending herbs, upright, bushy-branched herbs, or shrubs. |
6 Creeping, decumbent or ascending herbs; leaflets (3) 5-11 per leaf. |
7 Stem pubescence strigose- appressed; leaflets (3-) 5 per leaf. |
7 Stem pubescence hirsute or pilose with long brownish hairs; leaflets 5-11 per leaf. |
8 Hairs of stem glandular; fruits spreading; leaflets (5-) 9-11 per leaf |
8 Hairs of stem non- glandular, brownish; fruits deflexed; leaflets 5-9 per leaf |
6 Erect, bushy-branched suffruticose herbs or shrubs; leaflets (7-) 9-15 per leaf. |
9 Shrub; leaflets 20-75 (-100) mm long; corollas 12-18 mm long, bright pink or bright purple |
9 Herb or suffrutescent herb; corollas 5-9 mm long, cream, rose, tan, yellow, greenish, orange, or purplish. |
10 Legume 7-9 mm long, ovoid, not falcate, indehiscent, with 2-3 seeds; corolla 6-9 mm long; [native species] |
10 Legume 15-36 mm long, linear- cylindric, slightly to strongly falcate, dehiscent, with 3-12 or more seeds; corolla 5-6 mm long; [introduced species]. |
11 Legume 15-20 mm long, strongly falcate |
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1 Liana, climbing by twining; [tribe Millettieae] |
2 Inflorescence a stiff panicle; leaflets (5-) 7-9; ovary and fruit glabrous; leaves evergreen |
2 Inflorescence a pendent raceme; leaflets 7-19; ovary and fruit either glabrous or densely velvety- villous; leaves cold- deciduous |
1 Shrubs and trees, lacking climbing adaptations. |
3 Leaflets glandular- punctate (not requiring magnification). |
4 Leaflets 4-10 cm long; leaves with 7-13 leaflets; large tree; flowers ca. 15 mm long, pink-purple; [tribe Milletieae] |
4 Leaflets 0.4-4 (-7) cm long; leaves with (7-) 9-31 leaflets; shrub or small tree; flowers 4-11 mm long, white, cream, violet, purple, or blue; [tribe Amorpheae]. |
5 Corolla reduced to a single petal (the standard); flowers whitish, sky blue, dark blue, purple, or violet; [collectively widespread] |
5 Corolla of 5 petals; flowers white to cream, sometimes 'fading' to dark purple; [s. FL, TX]. |
6 Flowers papilionoid, either cream, fading purplish, or bicolored white and purple; [s. FL, TX, OK] |
6 Flowers only slightly bilaterally symmetrical, white; [TX] |
3 Leaflets lacking punctate glands. |
7 Leaflets 3-9 per leaf; leaflets 2-15 (-20) cm long; small or large tree (to shrub in Dermatophyllum secundiflorum). |
8 Lateral leaflets all or mostly alternate along the rachis. |
9 Leaflets (5-) 7-9 per leaf; flowers 18-25 mm long, white; [native, also planted; SC, GA, AL, MS, and LA northwards] |
9 Leaflets 3-5 (-7) per leaf; flowers ca. 10 mm long, yellow-white or pinkish; [non-native; FL peninsula] |
8 Lateral leaflets strictly in opposite pairs. |
10 Stamens free; [tribe Sophoreae]. |
11 Corollas 14-16 mm long, blue-purple; fruit turgid and cylindrical, but torulose- constricted between the scarlet seeds; [native; TX] |
11 Corollas 7-11 mm long, cream to white; fruit flattened, not constricted between the tan to light brown seeds; [non-native] |
10 Stamens monadelphous or diadelphous; [FL peninsula]; [tribe Milletieae] |
12 Fruit woody, unwinged, with 1 very large (ca. 2 cm long) seed; stamens diadelphous |
12 Fruit 2-9 cm long, membranaceous, with 4 broad, tan, ruffled wings and 1-6 black seeds; stamens monadelphous |
7 Leaflets (5-) 7-31 per leaf, at least the larger and better developed leaves on a plant with 11 or more leaflets; leaflets 0.4-12 cm long; shrub, small tree, or large tree. |
13 Corollas 5-6 mm long, pink or purplish; fruits 15-35 mm long, 1-3 mm wide |
13 Corollas 9-30 mm long, yellow, white, pink, or purplish; fruits 25-150 (-200) mm long, 5-35 mm wide. |
14 Corollas ca. 10 mm long, pink or purplish; fruit a single-seeded, globose or broadly ellipsoid drupe, 2.5-4 cm long, 2-3 cm in diameter; leaflets 4-12 cm long; [s. FL] |
14 Corollas 15-30 mm long, white, pink, purplish, or bright yellow or coppery; fruit a legume, seeds several; leaflets 2-6 cm long; [collectively widespread] |
15 Corollas bright yellow or coppery; fruits about as thick as wide, either bladdery- inflated or moniliform (like beads on a string). |
16 Fruits bladdery- inflated, 50-70 mm long, 20-30 mm in diameter; stamens diadelphous; [cultivated ornamental, rarely establishing] |
16 Fruits moniliform (like beads on a string), 100-200 mm long, 7-8 mm in diameter at the seeds, 1-2 mm in diameter between the seeds; stamens free; [native of coastal peninsular FL and TX]. |
15 Corollas white, pink, or pink-purple; fruits flattened (wider than thick). |
17 Leaflets short- acuminate at the apex; calyx truncate- sinuate at its apex; branches not armed; [tropical s. FL] |
17 Leaflets rounded, obtuse, or retuse (and also usually with a noticeable mucro) at the apex; calyx with lobes at its apex; branches sometimes armed with stipular ( nodal) spines or internodal hispid hairs; [temperate, widespread in our region] |