Desmodium tortuosum (PROSEA)

Plant Resources of South-East Asia Introduction

List of species

Desmodium tortuosum (Swartz) DC.

Family: Leguminosae - Papilionoideae

Synonyms

• Desmodium purpureum (Miller) Fawcett & Rendle.

Vernacular names

• Florida beggarweed, (twisted) tick trefoil, sweetheart (En)
• Indonesia: potong kujang.

Distribution

Native to the Caribbean and Central America, introduced into Africa, Asia and Australia. In South-East Asia sometimes naturalized, e.g. in Indonesia (Java).

Uses

Green manure and cover crop, covering the ground quickly and competing well with weeds. A digestible forage, used for hay or as a browse; also a weed in e.g. groundnut. Appreciated in coconut plantations in Tamil Nadu, India, and as goat fodder in the Caribbean. As suitable as lucerne in protein supplement for poultry feed. At present its popularity seems to be waning.

Observations

• Annual or perennial herb or shrub up to 1.5 m tall. Branches striate, hairs fine and dense.
• Leaves trifoliolate; petiole longer than leaflet, stipules lanceolate, 6-15 mm long; leaflets ovate to elliptical, 2-10(-14) cm × 1-7 cm.
• Inflorescence a lax, simple or branched panicle of racemes, 15-30 cm long; bracts lanceolate-acuminate, 6-8 mm long, with long hairs along the margin; flowers 2-3 together; pedicel filiform, 1-2 cm long.
• Calyx 2-3 mm long; petals blue to purple, 4-5 mm long.
• Pod 1-3 cm × 3 mm, with 3-6 ovate-rounded joints, each 4-5 mm in diameter.

D. tortuosum is found in disturbed areas, cultivated fields and grassland, on sandy or calcareous soils in coastal areas, up to 1200 m altitude.

Selected sources

• Backer, C.A. & Bakhuizen van den Brink Jr., R.C., 1963-1968. Flora of Java. 3 volumes. Wolters-Noordhoff, Groningen, the Netherlands. 647, 641, 761 pp.
• Bisby, F., Polhill, R.M. & Zarucchi, J. (Database managers), 1994. International Legume Database Information Service 1994. ILDIS Coordination Centre, Biology Department, University of Southampton, Southampton, United Kingdom.
• Bogdan, A.V., 1977. Tropical pasture and fodder plants (grasses and legumes). Longman, London, United Kingdom. 475 pp.
• Hacker, J.B., 1990. A guide to herbaceous and shrub legumes of Queensland. University of Queensland Press, St. Lucia, Australia. 351 pp.
• Lazarides, M. & Hince, B. (Editors), 1993. CSIRO handbook of economic plants of Australia. Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization, East Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. 330 pp.
• Wealth of India (various editors), 1948-1976. A dictionary of Indian raw materials and industrial products: raw materials. 11 volumes. Publications and Information Directorate, Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, New Delhi, India. 4441 pp.

Authors

• M.S.M. Sosef & L.J.G. van der Maesen