Kummerowia striata

Kummerowia striata is a species of flowering plant in the legume family known by the common name Japanese clover. It is native to much of Asia and it is present in the eastern United States as an introduced species. This annual herb grows prostrate, spreading, or erect stems. It grows up to 40 centimeters tall. The leaves are made up of three oval leaflets. Flowers occur in the leaf axils. There are cleistogamous flowers, which self-fertilize and never open, and chasmogamous flowers, which open and receive pollen from other plants. The fruit is a small legume pod containing one seed. At the close of the American Civil War, this plant appeared all over the southern United States. It was likely introduced to North America accidentally, possibly as a seed contaminant, but it was later imported and planted intentionally. It was used to vegetate pastures and provide forage for livestock. Along with Korean clover it was used to revegetate abandoned coal mine sites. It was also used to prevent erosion. It is still used today. Cultivars are available, including 'Kobe'. This plant grows in the wild and is sometimes invasive. Kummerowia striata is a plant native to East Asia and an invasive plant in the United States in the family Fabaceae. The plant was introduced in the 1800s and is now found in a majority of the United States, and is especially prevalent in the eastern part of the country. Its spread boomed after the American Civil War and has continued to spread, thriving in sandy soils that have been disturbed by human activities. It has benefits to human health and agriculture, as well as providing a food source to numerous species across the food web. Kummerowia striata can grow to be 16 inches tall. Leaves grow alternate from one another, and only grow to be 0.75 inches long. The leaf edges have no teeth or lobes. The tops of the leaves are dark green, and the bottom of the leaf is light green. The plant grows 0.2–0.3 inch long flowers in three different colors, pink, purple, and white. Flowers sprout from leaf axils in clusters of 1–3. The petals and sepals are fused at the base to form a cup like structure. The K. striata has both male and female parts and can self pollinate as well as be pollinated by insects. Each flower has five petals and a light green calyx with five teeth. The plant has two types of flowers, one has colored petals and the other has no petals. Kummerowia striata blooms for approximately two months (August to September), from the summer into the fall. In the following two months (October to November) the seeds ripen. The fruits are 0.2 inches long and contains one seed. The fruit is dry and stays intact when ripe. The plant is an annual, but re-seed prolifically. Kummerowia striata (Thunb. ) Schindl. was formerly classified as Lespedeza striata. Its common names include Japanese clover, and common lespedeza. Kummerowia striata is in a genus with one other species, K. stipulacea. They are both herbaceous legumes and can be differentiated by their calyx coverings. The calyx of the Kummerowia stipulacea covers 1/3-1/2 of the legume, where the K. striata covers 1/2-4/5 of the legume. Kummerowia striata is native to China, and Japan. The plant is invasive to North American, and it is distributed along the east coast from New York to Florida. It reaches as far west as New Mexico. It was first noticed in Charleston, Virginia in the 1840s. Kummerowia striata is most likely to be found in fields, woods, on the side of roads, or other areas where the ground may have been disturbed. It is uncommon to find a single Kummerowia striata, it is more likely to find a group of them. Kummerowia striata will grow best in moist sandy soil with direct sunlight, but can still grow in other conditions. Kummerowia striata can grows in the 4.5–7.0 pH range, but thrives at 6.0–6.5.