Senna pallida

Botanical Name

Senna pallida (Vahl) Irwin & Barneby

Common Name(s)

  • two-flowered senna
  • ejotillo del monte (Spanish)

Legume Clades

Native Geographic Range

  • Southwestern North America

IUCN Status

Growth Form

shrub

Cultivation Status in AZ

Rarely cultivated

Description

Deciduous shrubs to 10 ft (3 m) high (or more in tropical climates) with slender stems and smooth bark. Leaves are once-pinnate with 3--11 pairs of dark green, rounded to oval leaflets. Showy yellow flowers appear during much of the year with sufficient warmth and moisture.

Habitat

This variable species is widely distributed in tropical regions of Mexico, the Caribbean, Central America, and South America in many habitats and various soil types. The plants in this field originated as seeds from southeastern Sonora, Mexico, in tropical deciduous forest.

Uses

None reported.

Horticulture

Two-flowered senna is not generally available from nurseries. The stems freeze at around 24° F (-4.4° C) but resprout and grow rapidly the following season with sufficient irrigation. This species will grow will with substantial shade.