Centrosema pubescens Benth.

Global description
 
Centrosema pubescens is a twining or climbing herbaceous vine, annual or perennial, with alternate leaves, and compound trifoliate with broad oval leaflets and long petioles. This plant is slightly hairy or glabrous. The flowers are of papilionaceae type, purple pink to white in color, and rather large (about 3 cm wide). They are grouped by 2-3 in axillary inflorescence with long peduncles. The fruit is a flat linear pod with marked sides and the tip is extended by an elongated beak. It contains 15 to 22 seeds with smooth integument, ranging from reddish-brown to black.
 
Cotyledons
 
The cotyledons are held by a petiole of 5 to 7 mm long. The leaf blade is sagittate (arrowhead shape) 25-30 mm long and 12 mm wide, with a clear midrib, and light green in color.
 
First leaves
 
The first leaves are alternate, compound, trifoliate, carried by a petiole 2 to 3.5 cm long. The terminal leaflets are oblong oval, 3.5 to 3.8 cm long and 1.7 to 2 cm wide, with a pointed apex.
 
General habit
 
Long vigorous twining vine, creeping and climbing, whose stem can measure several meters.
 
Underground system
 
The root is a perennial taproot.
 
Stem
 
The stem is slender, cylindrical to finely fluted, usually twisted, full, covered with a fine pubescence of hairs pressed upwards.
 
Leaf
 
The leaves are alternate, trifoliate compound. The petiole measures 1 to 3 cm long. It is bordered by two oval lanceolate stipules with an acute tip, 2 to 4 mm long. The leaflets are oval, elliptical or oblong, rounded base, with the tip acute to obtuse or rounded, slightly acuminate or mucronate. They measure 4 to 7.5 cm long and 2 to 4.5 cm wide. The venation is reticulate. The leaflets are slightly pubescent (hairs are present at least on the ribs of the bottom surface) covered with a soft and short hairs. Filiform stipels frame the base of the petiolules.
 
Inflorescence
 
The inflorescence is axillary and consists of 2 or 3 flowers at the end of a long stalk of 2 to 5 cm.
 
 
Flower
 
The flowers are pink purple or white with purple markings. The peducles are usually longer than the petioles. Bracteoles are oval elliptical and measure 8 to 12 mm long. The calyx measures 10 to 12 mm long. It comprises of four acute triangular lobes, the lower is linear and measures 5 to 7 mm long. The corolla is papilionaceae type. It is 3 cm long on average. The standard measures 2 to 4 cm in diameter. It is notched at the top. It is whitish to cream, striped with purple and yellow on the outside. The wings are lilac in color, purple at the apex. The keel is short and obtuse.
 
Fruit
 
The fruit is a linear pod 8 to 20 cm long and 5-7 mm wide, with the sutures marked by ribs and the apex extended by a beak of 1 cm long. It contains 15 to 22 seeds.
 
Seed
 
The seed is oblong to rectangular and elliptical in cross-section, 4-5 mm long. It is smooth, shiny, blackish-brown or reddish-brown to greenish-yellow with dark mottling.

 

Origin

Centrosema pubescens is native to Tropical America from Mexico to South Brasil.

Worldwide distribution

It has been introduced in Tropical Africa, in the Indian Ocean islands (Reunion, Mauritius, Seychelles, Comoros, Mayotte), in India, South-East Asia, and New Caledonia

https://www.gbif.org/species/2964904