Lebeckia (sect. Lebeckia) Thunb. section Lebeckia
Creators: name: le Roux, M. M.
name: Van Wyk, B. - E.
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2007
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Plantae
Tracheophyta
Magnoliopsida
Fabales
Fabaceae
Lebeckia

description: <i>3.2. The section Lebeckia</i> <i>Lebeckia</i> Thunb. section <i>Lebeckia</i>. Type: <i>L. sepiaria</i> (L.) Thunb., chosen by Hutchinson in Gen. Flow. Pl.: 358 (1964). <i>Spartium</i> L., Pl. Rar. Afr.: 91 (1760), Sp. Pl.: 995 (1764), Gmelin, Syst. Nat. 2 (2): 1088 (1792), <i>pro parte</i>. <i>Lebeckia</i> Thunb., Prod. Pl. Cap.: 122 (1800), Fl. Cap.: 561 (1823), <i>pro parte majore</i>; <i>Eckl</i>. and <i>Zeyh</i>., Enum.: 192 (1836), <i>pro parte majore</i>; E. Mey. in Linnaea 7: 155 (1832), Comm. Pl. Afr. Austr. 1: 34 (1836), <i>pro parte majore</i>. <i>Sarcophyllum</i> E. Mey. in Linnaea 7: 155 (1832), Comm. Pl. Afr. Austr. 1: 34 (1836). <i>Eu-Lebeckia</i> Benth. in Hook., Lond. J. Bot. 3: 358 (1844), <i>synon. nov.</i> <i>Phyllodiastrum</i> Benth. in Hook., Lond. J. Bot. 3: 358 (1844), <i>synon. nov.</i> Erect to prostrate, slightly to markedly glaucous suffrutices. <i>Leaves</i> simple, acicular, glabrous, sparse or dense, spirally arranged, often articulated near the middle, mucronulate. <i>Inflorescences</i> terminal, short or elongate, laxly to densely manyflowered; rachis usually furrowed; flowers small or large (6– 18 mm long), yellow; bracts ovate to lanceolate, acuminate, caducous; bracteoles narrowly triangular, acuminate. <i>Calyx</i> equally to subequally lobed, lobes deltoid, ± as long as the tube, tips minutely pubescent on the inside. <i>Petals</i> yellow, sometimes fading to orange or rarely purple (<i>L. longipes</i>), invariably totally glabrous. <i>Standard</i> lanceolate to orbicular; apex obtuse. <i>Wings</i> oblong; apex obtuse; sculpturing present or absent. <i>Keel</i> rostrate, pockets sometimes present. <i>Stamens</i> fused into an open sheath, upper third free; anthers 10, 5 oblong and basifixed, 5 short and dorsifixed (vexillary stamen only slightly shorter than long anthers). <i>Pistil</i> sessile to markedly stipitate; ovary oblong to linear; ovules ± 6–20; style shorter than the ovary, curved upwards. <i>Pods</i> linear or ovoid, straight or slightly deflexed, up to 12 mm wide. <i>Seeds</i> reniform. <i>3.2.1. Diagnostic characters</i> Species of <i>Lebeckia</i> section <i>Lebeckia</i> differ from all other species in the genus by their needle-like leaves, which are terete (never flat). <i>3.2.2. Distribution</i> <i>Lebeckia</i> section <i>Lebeckia</i> (and also the <i>L. sepiaria</i> group) are endemic to the Cape Floristic Region, from Namaqualand to Port Elizabeth. Key to the species of <i>Lebeckia</i> section <i>Lebeckia</i> 1a. Keel spirally twisted: 2a. Fruit up to 50 mm long; short-lived fireweed; <i>L. wrightii</i> flowers 1–3 per inflorescence 2b. Fruit 60–120 mm long; perennial herb; <i>L. pauciflora</i> flowers more than 5 per inflorescence 1b. Keel not twisted: 3a. Calyx teeth longer than the tube <i>L. grandiflora</i> 3b. Calyx teeth shorter than the tube: 4a. Leaves articulated near the middle: 5a. Fruit long-stipitate (stipe 10–20 mm long); <i>L. carnosa</i> flowers very widely spaced on rachis 5b. Fruit sessile or short-stipitate (stipe less than 5 mm long), flowers usually densely spaced on rachis (if somewhat widely spaced, then the fruit is flat): 6a. Fruit ovoid (up to 13 mm long) <i>L. brevicarpa</i> 6b. Fruit oblong to linear (more than 15 mm long): <i>(continued on next page)</i> 7a. Fruit oblong (up to 6x longer than wide), flat, upper suture with distinct margin or wing: 8a. Flowers 6–11 mm long; <i>L. meyeriana</i> fruit 20–35 mm long 8b. Flowers ca. 15 mm long; <i>L. macowanii</i> fruit ± 50 mm long 7b. Fruit linear (more than 10× longer than wide), terete or semi-terete, upper suture without a margin or wing: 9a. Flowers usually up to 8 mm long; <i>L. gracilis</i> upper lateral sinuses of calyx± as wide as medial sinus and lower lateral sinuses; southern coastal distribution from Bredasdorp to Port Elizabeth 9b. Flowers more than 9 mm long; upper lateral sinuses of calyx much wider than medial sinus and lower lateral sinuses; western coastal distribution from Namaqualand and inland to the Cedarberg and eastwards to Heidelberg: 10a. Fruit dehiscent, not spongy, subterete, <i>L. ambigua</i> ± 2 mm wide, sometimes falcate 10b. Fruit indehiscent, spongy, terete, <i>L. sepiaria</i> more than 4 mm wide, straight, often somewhat torulose 4b. Leaves not articulated: 11a. Fruit long-stipitate (stipe 15 mm or longer) <i>L. longipes</i> 11b. Fruit sessile or short-stipitate <i>L. plukenetiana</i> (stipe up to 5 mm long) Within the section <i>Lebeckia</i>, there are four species groups: (1) the <i>L. sepiaria</i> group — four species with terete or semi-terete, ± sessile pods and a generally erect, virgate habit (Fig. 1). (2) the <i>L. plukenetiana</i> E. Mey. group — five species with stipitate, flat pods of up to 75 mm long. (3) the <i>L. wrightii</i> (Harv.) Bolus group – one species – a short-lived fireweed with stipules and flat pods. (4) the <i>L. pauciflora</i> group — two species with relatively long calyx lobes and linear, stipitate, semi-terete pods of more than 70 mm long.
description: Published as part of <i>le Roux, M. M. &amp; Van Wyk, B. - E., 2007, A revision of Lebeckia sect. Lebeckia: The L. sepiaria group, pp. 118-130 in South African Journal of Botany 73 (1)</i> on pages 121-122, DOI: 10.1016/j.sajb.2006.09.005, http://zenodo.org/record/7958313