Aeschynomene mimosifolia

Aeschynomene mimosifolia Vatke

Common names

Knuckle bean (English); kankula, kabinguchonde, misaka, kawombonika (Bemba); soyo, tusoyo (Kunda); canata, mwekwe, mzambwe (Nyanja).

The Latin name mimosifolia refers to the mimosa-like leaves of this species. The English name is a reference to the knuckle-shaped pods, which are constricted between the seeds.

General description and distinguishing characteristics

A straggling shrub, 1-2 m high. Bark brown to green on branchlets, densely covered with glandular hairs. Leaves compound, 1-2cm long with 6-15 pairs of sickle-shaped leaflets. Leaflets 1-4 x 0.5-1 mm. Flowers standard petal orange-yellow with red veins, wing and keel petals yellow; produced in racemes up to 10 cm long January-March). Fruits are largely hairless pods with 1-2 rounded segments, deeply constricted between the seeds (May-August).

There are three shrub species of Aeschynomene found in the valley: A. mimosifolia, A. indica and A. leptophylla. Aeschynomene indica has 16-50 linear oblong leaflets and its fruits are 2-5 cm long with 5-13 joints, only slightly constricted between seeds. Aeschynomene leptophylla has red, sticky hairs on its branches, and blue-green leaves up to 25cm long; its leaflets are oblong, and comparatively large (up to 1.5cm in length).

Range and habitat

Aeschynomene mimosifolia occurs in Kenya, Tanzania, DR Congo, Zambia, Zimbabwe and Malawi. In the valley it is found growing along river banks.