''Aeschynomene rudis'' is a species of flowering plant in the
legume family known by the common name zigzag jointvetch. It is native to South America
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/ref> but it is known from other continents, including North America, as a noxious weed
A noxious weed, harmful weed or injurious weed is a weed that has been designated by an agricultural or other governing authority as a plant that is harmful to agricultural or horticultural crops, natural habitats or ecosystems, or humans or lives ...
, especially of wet areas such as rice fields. It is aquatic
Aquatic means relating to water; living in or near water or taking place in water; does not include groundwater, as "aquatic" implies an environment where plants and animals live.
Aquatic(s) may also refer to:
* Aquatic animal, either vertebrate ...
or semi-aquatic, growing bristly, glandular stems near or in water. It grows up to two metres tall. The leaves are composed of oval-shaped leaflets each about a centimetre long. At the base of each leaf are large, flat, pointed stipule
In botany, a stipule is an outgrowth typically borne on both sides (sometimes on just one side) of the base of a leafstalk (the petiole (botany), petiole). They are primarily found among dicots and rare among monocots. Stipules are considered part ...
s. The flower is purple-tinted white and 1 to 1.5 centimetres wide. The fruit is a lobed, gland-dotted legume pod narrowed between the seeds. It is up to 5 centimetres long and less than one wide. As the pod dries it breaks into segments, each segment containing a seed. The hard, shiny seed is kidney-shaped and 2 or 3 millimetres long.
References
External links
Jepson Manual TreatmentUSDA Plants ProfilePhoto gallery
rudis
Flora of Southern America
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