Senna

Belongs within: Leguminosae.

Senna is a pantropical genus of leguminous plants including herbs, shrubs and trees, most of which produce bright yellow flowers. Seeds of the Chinese senna S. obtusifolia are ground to produce cassia gum, used as a thickening agent in cooking, or roasted as a coffee substitute, whereas its leaves may be fermented to produce kawal, a meat substitute eaten in Sudan. African senna S. didymobotrya has become widely naturalised outside its native range as an ornamental or source of green manure.

Characters (from Hickman 1993): Perennial, shrub, tree, unarmed or spines weak. Leaves even-1-pinnate, alternate; stipules sometimes small or ephemeral; leaflets 2–10 (18) pairs. Inflorescence a raceme or panicle, axillary or terminal. Flowers generally slightly bilateral, generally showy; sepals more or less free; petals free, generally yellow; stamens free, 7 fertile, 3 sterile, anthers generally larger than filaments, opening by terminal pores. Fruits dehiscent or not. Seeds few to many.

Senna
    |--S. acclinisB00
    |--S. aciphyllaB00
    |--S. alataB00
    |--S. armata [=Cassia armata]H93
    |--S. artemisioidesMLP09
    |    |--S. a. ssp. artemisioidesMLP09
    |    |--S. a. ssp. filifoliaG04
    |    |--S. a. ssp. helmsiiMLP09
    |    |--S. a. ssp. oligophyllaEF04
    |    |--S. a. ssp. petiolarisOW01
    |    `--S. a. ssp. × sturtiiMLP09
    |--S. auriculataPP07
    |--S. barclayanaB00
    |--S. bicapsulatusH06
    |--S. chatelianaKM08
    |--S. coriaceaeB00
    |--S. coronilloidesB00
    |--S. corymbosaH06
    |--S. didymobotryaB00
    |--S. glutinosaMLP09
    |    |--S. g. ssp. glutinosaEF04
    |    `--S. g. ssp. pruinosaEF04
    |--S. goniodesLK14
    |--S. hirsutaB00
    |--S. leptocladaB00
    |--S. ligustrinaJ87
    |--S. magnifoliaB00
    |--S. marksianaB00
    |--S. multiglandulosa [incl. Cassia tomentosa]H93
    |--S. nemophilaB00
    |--S. notabilisB00
    |--S. obtusifoliaLK14
    |--S. occidentalisLK14
    |--S. odorataB00
    |--S. oligocladaB00
    |--S. pendulaH06
    |    |--S. p. var. pendulaH06
    |    `--S. p. var. glabrataH06
    |--S. planitiicolaB00
    |--S. pleurocarpaB00
    |--S. queenslandicaB00
    |--S. reticulataB14
    |--S. retusaB00
    |--S. septemtrionalisH06
    |--S. sericeaMLP09
    |--S. siameaB00
    |--S. surattensisB00
    |    |--S. s. ssp. surattensisLK14
    |    `--S. s. ssp. sulfureaLK14
    |--S. symoniiLK14
    |--S. timoriensisLK14
    |--S. toraJ07
    `--S. venustaB00

*Type species of generic name indicated

References

[B14] Bouchard, P. (ed.) 2014. The Book of Beetles: A lifesize guide to six hundred of nature’s gems. Ivy Press: Lewes (United Kingdom).

[B00] Braby, M. F. 2000. Butterflies of Australia: their identification, biology and distribution vol. 1. CSIRO Publishing: Collingwood (Victoria).

[EF04] Etten, E. J. B. van, & J. E. D. Fox. 2004. Vegetation classification and ordination of the central Hamersley Ranges, Western Australia. Journal of the Royal Society of Western Australia 87 (2): 63–79.

[G04] Gibson, N. 2004. Flora and vegetation of the Eastern Goldfields Ranges: part 6. Mt Manning Range. Journal of the Royal Society of Western Australia 87 (2): 35–47.

[H06] Henderson, L. 2006. Comparisons of invasive plants in southern Africa originating from southern temperate, northern temperate and tropical regions. Bothalia 36 (2): 201–222.

[H93] Hickman, J. C. (ed.) 1993. The Jepson Manual: Higher Plants of California. University of California Press: Berkeley (California).

[J07] Jadhav, D. 2007. Ethno-medicinal plants used by Bhil tribe of Matrunda, district Ratlam, Madhya Pradesh, India. Bulletin of the Botanical Survey of India 49: 203–206.

[J87] Judd, W. S. 1987. Floristic study of Morne La Visite and Pic Macaya National Parks, Haiti. Bulletin of the Florida State Museum—Biological Sciences 32 (1): 1–136.

[KM08] Keighery, G. J., & W. Muir. 2008. Vegetation and vascular flora of Faure Island, Shark Bay, Western Australia. Records of the Western Australian Museum Supplement 75: 11–19.

[LK14] Lyons, M. N., G. J. Keighery, L. A. Gibson & T. Handasyde. 2014. Flora and vegetation communities of selected islands off the Kimberley coast of Western Australia. Records of the Western Australian Museum Supplement 81: 205–244.

[MLP09] McKenzie, N. L., S. van Leeuwen & A. M. Pinder. 2009. Introduction to the Pilbara Biodiversity Survey, 2002–2007. Records of the Western Australian Museum Supplement 78 (1): 3–89.

[OW01] Orchard, A. E., & A. J. G. Wilson (eds) 2001. Flora of Australia vol. 11A. Mimosaceae, Acacia part 1. Australian Biological Resources Study: Canberra.

[PP07] Pandey, R. P., & P. M. Padhye. 2007. Studies on phytodiversity of Arid Machia Safari Park-Kailana in Jodhpur (Rajasthan). Bulletin of the Botanical Survey of India 49: 15–78.