Colutea
Encyclopedia
Colutea is a genus
of about 25 species
of deciduous
flowering shrubs in the legume family Fabaceae
, growing from 2-5 m tall, native to southern Europe
, north Africa
and southwest Asia
. The leaves
are pinnate
and light green to glaucous grey-green. The flower
s are yellow to orange, pea-shaped and produced in racemes throughout the summer. These are followed by the attractive inflated seed pods which change from pale green to red or copper in colour.
Colutea arborescens
, known as Bladder Senna— John Gerard
cautioned, however, that they are not true senna, "though we have followed others in giving it to name Bastard Sena, which name is very unproper to it"— is indigenous to the Mediterranean; it has yellow flowers. It has a height and spread of up to 5 m. Other species include Colutea orientalis
, with grey leaves and coppery flowers.
. It was imported early, before 1568, probably for medicinal purposes, but now is grown mostly for its attractive seed
pods., used in dried arrangements. Though in Virginia Thomas Jefferson
had it and it appears in Lady Jean Skipwith's lists of plants, in US gardens, it is little more than a marginal curiosity.
Colutea arborescens will grow in poor sandy soils in preference to heavy or loam
y soils. It has become naturalised in the UK, where ii established itself in the sharp drainage of railway embankments.. It is easy to propagate from seed. It is generally pest resistant, though garden snails will climb up the plant in wet weather to eat the leaves. The hybrid Colutea x media (C. arborescens x C. orientalis
) is also cultivated for its coppery flowers.
Colutea species are used as food plants by the larva
e of some Lepidoptera
species including Coleophora colutella
.
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
of about 25 species
Species
In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...
of deciduous
Deciduous
Deciduous means "falling off at maturity" or "tending to fall off", and is typically used in reference to trees or shrubs that lose their leaves seasonally, and to the shedding of other plant structures such as petals after flowering or fruit when ripe...
flowering shrubs in the legume family Fabaceae
Fabaceae
The Fabaceae or Leguminosae, commonly known as the legume, pea, or bean family, is a large and economically important family of flowering plants. The group is the third largest land plant family, behind only the Orchidaceae and Asteraceae, with 730 genera and over 19,400 species...
, growing from 2-5 m tall, native to southern Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, north Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
and southwest Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
. The leaves
Leaf
A leaf is an organ of a vascular plant, as defined in botanical terms, and in particular in plant morphology. Foliage is a mass noun that refers to leaves as a feature of plants....
are pinnate
Pinnate
Pinnate is a term used to describe feather-like or multi-divided features arising from both sides of a common axis in plant or animal structures, and comes from the Latin word pinna meaning "feather", "wing", or "fin". A similar term is pectinate, which refers to a comb-like arrangement of parts...
and light green to glaucous grey-green. The flower
Flower
A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants . The biological function of a flower is to effect reproduction, usually by providing a mechanism for the union of sperm with eggs...
s are yellow to orange, pea-shaped and produced in racemes throughout the summer. These are followed by the attractive inflated seed pods which change from pale green to red or copper in colour.
Colutea arborescens
Colutea arborescens
Colutea arborescens is a species of leguminous shrub known by the common name bladder senna. It is native to Europe and North Africa, but it is known on other continents where it is grown as an ornamental and used in landscaping for erosion control. It is also known in the wild as an occasionally...
, known as Bladder Senna— John Gerard
John Gerard
John Gerard aka John Gerarde was an English herbalist notable for his herbal garden and botany writing. In 1597 he published a large and heavily illustrated "Herball, or Generall Historie of Plantes", which went on to be the most widely circulated botany book in English in the 17th century...
cautioned, however, that they are not true senna, "though we have followed others in giving it to name Bastard Sena, which name is very unproper to it"— is indigenous to the Mediterranean; it has yellow flowers. It has a height and spread of up to 5 m. Other species include Colutea orientalis
Colutea orientalis
Colutea orientalis is a species of leguminous shrub native to Europe and Asia. It is a deciduous, grey-leafed, bushy shrub that grows to a height of up to 2 m . It bears clusters of small yellow and coppery-red flowers in summer, followed by green seed pods. Colutea x media is a hybrid between C....
, with grey leaves and coppery flowers.
Cultivation and uses
Colutea arborescens, is in general cultivation in the UKUnited Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
. It was imported early, before 1568, probably for medicinal purposes, but now is grown mostly for its attractive seed
Seed
A seed is a small embryonic plant enclosed in a covering called the seed coat, usually with some stored food. It is the product of the ripened ovule of gymnosperm and angiosperm plants which occurs after fertilization and some growth within the mother plant...
pods., used in dried arrangements. Though in Virginia Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson was the principal author of the United States Declaration of Independence and the Statute of Virginia for Religious Freedom , the third President of the United States and founder of the University of Virginia...
had it and it appears in Lady Jean Skipwith's lists of plants, in US gardens, it is little more than a marginal curiosity.
Colutea arborescens will grow in poor sandy soils in preference to heavy or loam
Loam
Loam is soil composed of sand, silt, and clay in relatively even concentration . Loam soils generally contain more nutrients and humus than sandy soils, have better infiltration and drainage than silty soils, and are easier to till than clay soils...
y soils. It has become naturalised in the UK, where ii established itself in the sharp drainage of railway embankments.. It is easy to propagate from seed. It is generally pest resistant, though garden snails will climb up the plant in wet weather to eat the leaves. The hybrid Colutea x media (C. arborescens x C. orientalis
Colutea orientalis
Colutea orientalis is a species of leguminous shrub native to Europe and Asia. It is a deciduous, grey-leafed, bushy shrub that grows to a height of up to 2 m . It bears clusters of small yellow and coppery-red flowers in summer, followed by green seed pods. Colutea x media is a hybrid between C....
) is also cultivated for its coppery flowers.
Colutea species are used as food plants by the larva
Larva
A larva is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into adults. Animals with indirect development such as insects, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase of their life cycle...
e of some Lepidoptera
Lepidoptera
Lepidoptera is a large order of insects that includes moths and butterflies . It is one of the most widespread and widely recognizable insect orders in the world, encompassing moths and the three superfamilies of butterflies, skipper butterflies, and moth-butterflies...
species including Coleophora colutella
Coleophora
Coleophora is a very large genus of moths of the family Coleophoridae. It contains some 1,350 described species. The genus is represented on all continents, but the majority are found in the Nearctic and Palaearctic regions...
.