Parochetus communis D.Don

Habit

Prostrate perennial herb

Family Description

Trees, shrubs or herbs, sometimes twinging or climbing. Leaves althernate, sometimes simple but usually with few to many leaflets arranged trifoliately, pinnately, bipinnately or digitately; stipules usually present. Flowers zygomorphic and bisexual, or actinomorphic and osmetimes polygamous; infloresence often terminal, axillary or supra axillary. Calyx campanulate or tubular, 5-toothed, the posterior pair of teeth often ± connate. Petals mostly 5 or sometimes fewer, free or some or all connate, equal or unequal. Stamens commonly 10, rarely only 3 or 7 fetile and fully developed sometimes numerous; filaments variously untied, rarely free. Ovary monocarpellate, superior, unilocular or sometimes falsely plurilocular, ovules one or more borne on posterior suture; style simple, filiform or capitate, al. Fryit a pod (legume), valves usually dry rarely fleshy, usually dehiscent along both sutures or breaking transversely into 1-seeded segments, or indehicent. Seeds often pea- or bean-like, rarely conspicuously arrilate.
Leaves simple or with 2 to many leaflets arranged digitately or more commonly, pinnately. Flowers zygomorphic, small or large. Calyx often somewhat unequal, 4-5-toothed, the upper (posterior) 2 ± connate. Petals usually 5, the uppermost (standard) generally longer than the others, the 2 lateral petals (wings) usually parallel to each other and the 2 lowest often partially connate to form the keel to which the wings often adhere. Stamens usually 10, filaments free or more usually variously united: monadelphous with all 10 connate into a tube, or diadelphous where 9 are connate into a split tube and one (posterior) free or more rarely, where the filaments are united in two bundles of 5. Style usually upwardly curved, hooked or sometimes coiled.

Genus Description

Prostrate perennail herb, rooting at lower nodes. Leaves digitately 3-foliate, stipules free or shortly adnate to base of petiole. Flowers aolitary or 2 on axillary peduncles. Calyx campanulate, unequally 5-toothed, uper 2 teeth connate to near apex. Stanndard, wings oblong, keel shorter than wings and slightly hooked distally. Stamens diadelphous. Pods linear -olong , ± inflated , undivided within, seeds 8-20.

Species description

Leafflets broadly obovate, 0.5-2.5 x 0.5-2.5cm, ± retuse, base cuneate, margine subentire or glabrous above, appressed pubescent beneath, sometimes with a dark-coloured band near middle; petioles 2.5-12(-20)cm, stipuels lanceolate 5mm, peduncles somewhat longer than petioles with a ring of cunnate bracts 5mm near middle. Calyx 6-8mm, toothed to middle. Petals blue, standard obovate, 15-22mm, margin ± reflexed, wings and keel10-15mm, pods 15-20 x 3-4mm seeds rounded 1.5mm, blackish.

Chukha, Deothang, Thimphi to Sakten. 1500-3960m.