Cleomaceae
Cleome

Cleome monophylla L.

First published in Sp. Pl.: 672 (1753)
This species is accepted
The native range of this species is Tropical & S. Africa, N. Yemen, India, Sri Lanka. It is an annual and grows primarily in the seasonally dry tropical biome.

Descriptions

Capparidaceae, J. Elffers, R. A. Graham & G. P. Dewolf. Flora of Tropical East Africa. 1964

Morphology General Habit
Annual herb, erect or spreading, up to 1 m. tall, very variable.
Morphology Stem
Stem abundantly covered with rather short glandular and longer eglandular hairs.
Morphology Leaves
Leaves simple, very variable; blade usually lanceolate or oblong, more rarely ovate or linear-lanceolate, 1.4–4–7 cm. long, 0.75–1–3 cm. wide, pubescent on both surfaces with hairs like those of the stem.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Inflorescence up to 30 cm. long.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Calyx
Sepals 3–5 mm. long.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Corolla
Petals pink or mauve (or ? sometimes yellow).
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Androecium Stamens
Stamens 6.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
Capsules 2.5–8 cm. long, sessile or borne on a gynophore up to 2(–7) mm. long, abundantly covered with glandular and eglandular hairs.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Seeds
Seeds up to 1.8 mm. in diameter, brown with fine longitudinal striations and very low transverse ridges.
Figures
Fig. 2/19, p. 10.
Habitat
Grassland, deciduous woodland and bushland, lake-shores, becoming a weed of cultivated and disturbed ground; 30–2100 m.
Distribution
from Somali Republic (N.) to Cape Province, South Africa and west to Senegal K1 K2 K3 K4 K5 K7 T1 T2 T3 T4 T5 T6 T7 T8
[FTEA]

Capparidaceae, H. Wild. Flora Zambesiaca 1:1. 1960

Morphology General Habit
Erect annual herb to 0.6 m. tall, usually branched.
Morphology Stem
Stems pubescent with some hairs gland-tipped.
Morphology Leaves
Leaves petiolate; lamina 2–7.5 x 0.3–2.5 cm., linear-lanceolate to oblong, acute or subacute at the apex, rounded or slightly cordate at the base, entire, pubescent on both sides with hairs often glandular; petiole up to 3 cm. long (often less), pubescent.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Inflorescence a raceme, elongating in fruit; bracts sessile, similar to the leaves but slightly more cordate at the base and smaller; pedicels slender, glandular-pubescent, up to 1 cm. long, elongating in fruit up to 2 cm.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Calyx
Sepals up to 5 mm. long, linear-lanceolate, caudate or long-acuminate at the apex, pubescent outside with some hairs glandular.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Corolla
Petals pale rose or mauve, with a yellow band bordered with purple on the upper two, rarely white, lamina up to 9 mm. long, oblong, rounded at the apex, narrowing into a basal claw somewhat shorter than the lamina.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Androecium Stamens
Stamens 6, unequal, all fertile; filaments slender, up to 1 cm. long, glabrous; anthers oblong, c. 1.5 mm. long.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Gynoecium Pistil
Ovary almost sessile, c. 1.5 mm. long, linear-oblong, puberulous; style very short; stigma capitate.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
Capsule up to c. 10 cm. long, narrowly linear, puberulous, straight or slightly curved, narrowed to both ends with up to 6 longitudinal, anastomosing nerves on each valve; gynophore very short, up to 2 mm. long; style persistent.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Seeds
Seeds dark brown, c. 1.8 mm. in diam., radially ridged with the ridges bearing minute puberulous incrustations visible only at a x 40 magnification.
[FZ]

Extinction risk predictions for the world's flowering plants to support their conservation (2024). Bachman, S.P., Brown, M.J.M., Leão, T.C.C., Lughadha, E.N., Walker, B.E. https://nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/nph.19592

Conservation
Predicted extinction risk: not threatened. Confidence: confident
[AERP]

M. Thulin et al. Flora of Somalia, Vol. 1-4 [updated 2008] https://plants.jstor.org/collection/FLOS

Morphology General Habit
Annual herb; stem pubescent with short glandular hairs mixed with longer eglandular hairs
Morphology Leaves
Leaves simple; blade 1.5–7 x 0.3–1.8 cm, linear-lanceolate to oblong or ovate, pubescent on both surfaces; petiole up to 2.5 cm
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Calyx
Sepals 3–5 mm long
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Corolla
Petals pink or mauve, 5–9 mm long, unequal
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Androecium Stamens
Stamens 5 or 6
Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
Capsules 25–90 x 2–3 mm, glandular-puberulous, spreading or drooping, subsessile or borne on a gynophore up to 4 mm long
Morphology Reproductive morphology Seeds
Seeds up to 1.8 mm in diam., brown, with fine longitudinal striations and low transverse ridges.
Distribution
S1 widespread in Africa; Madagascar, India and Sri Lanka.
Ecology
Altitude range 175–230 m.
Note
A statement in Fl. Trop. E. Afr., Capparidaceae : 5 (1964) that this species occurs in N Somalia has not been verified.
[FSOM]

Common Names

English
Single-leaved cleome, Spider flower, Spindlepod

Sources

  • Angiosperm Extinction Risk Predictions v1

    • Angiosperm Threat Predictions
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0

  • Flora Zambesiaca

    • Flora Zambesiaca
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

  • Flora of Somalia

    • Flora of Somalia
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

  • Flora of Tropical East Africa

    • Flora of Tropical East Africa
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

  • Herbarium Catalogue Specimens

    • Digital Image © Board of Trustees, RBG Kew http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

  • Kew Backbone Distributions

    • The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants 2024. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and https://powo.science.kew.org/
    • © Copyright 2023 World Checklist of Vascular Plants. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

  • Kew Names and Taxonomic Backbone

    • The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants 2024. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and https://powo.science.kew.org/
    • © Copyright 2023 International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

  • Kew Science Photographs

    • Copyright applied to individual images

  • Plants and People Africa

    • Common Names from Plants and People Africa http://www.plantsandpeopleafrica.com/
    • © Plants and People Africa http://www.plantsandpeopleafrica.com http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/