Zornia glochidiata DC.

Global description

Zornia glochidiata is an erect or loose tufted plant spread on the ground. The leaves are alternate and have only one pair of asymmetrical leaflets at the end of a long petiole. The petiole has lanceolate stipules with a basal appendage at its base. The flowers are grouped in loose, axillary and terminal spikes. They are enclosed between 2 leafy bracts similar to stipules. The filaments of all the stamens are welded into a tube. The fruits are pods with 3 or 4 segments, covered with stiff hairs with reflected teeth.

Cotyledons

The cotyledons are kidney-shaped. The blade is 7 mm long and 3 mm wide, and is borne by a short petiole.

First leaves

The first leaves are alternate and composed. They consist of a petiole 1 cm long carrying at its base two lanceolate stipules provided with a small basal appendix. At the end of the petiole are two lanceolate leaflets borne by a short petiolule.

General habit

Zornia glochidiata is erect or loose tufted spread on the ground and abundantly branched from the base. The plant is 20 cm tall but can spread out 30 to 40 cm in diameter.

Undeground system

The root is a taproot.

Stem

The stem is cylindrical and solid. It is thin, measuring 1 mm wide and perfectly hairless.

Leaf

The leaves are alternate and compound, with two leaflets. They are borne by a hairless petiole 1 cm long. At the base of this petiole are 2 leafy stipules, lanceolate in shape and appendiculate at the base. The stipule is 8 mm long, of which the lower quarter is represented by the basal appendix. It is marked with 3 or 4 arched veins. At the end of the petiole are 2 lanceolate leaflets. They are borne by a short petiolule 1 mm long and weakly pubescent. The leaflets are up to 4 cm long and 7 mm wide. The top is acute corner, sometimes even apiculate and the base is slightly asymmetrical. The margin is entire. Two weakly marked veins start from the base. The upper surface is glabrous while the underside bears a few scattered hairs.

Inflorescence

The flowers are assembled in loose spikes 2 to 5 cm long, axillary and terminal, long pedunculated.

Flower

The flowers are enclosed between two leafy bracts 11 mm long and 7 mm wide, elliptic in shape and with a basal appendix. The flower is shorter than the bracts, it is 4 mm long. The corolla is composed of an upper orbicular petal (standard), two club-shaped lateral petals and a gutter-shaped lower petal (carina) in which the stamens are located. The filaments of all the stamens are welded into a tube. The petals are yellow, the standard is tinged with red or orange.

Fruit

The fruits are pods formed of 3 or 4 orbicular segments that disarticulate at maturity. The tegument of the pod is crosslinked. Each angle of the crosslinking has a thick and stiff bristle 1.5 to 2 mm long, with short, reflected teeth. Segments 3 and 4 exceed the bracts. Each segment contains a seed. At maturity, the segments of the pod disarticulate.

Seed

The seeds are flattened, semi-orbicular in shape of 2 mm in diameter.

https://www.gbif.org/fr/species/5355339