''Kennedia'' is a genus of thirteen species of flowering plants in the pea family

Fabaceae Fabaceae () or Leguminosae,International Code of Nomen ...

and is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found only in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also foun ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

. Plants in this genus are prostrate or climbing

perennials In horticulture, the term perennial ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the year") is used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. It has thus been defined as a plant that lives more than 2 years. The term is also ...

with

trifoliate The following terms are used to describe leaf morphology in the description and taxonomy of plants. Leaves may be simple (that is, the leaf blade or 'lamina' is undivided) or compound (that is, the leaf blade is divided into two or more leaflets ...

leaves and large, showy, pea-like flowers. There are species in all Australian states.

Description

Plants in the genus ''Kennedia'' are prostrate or climbing perennials that usually have softly-hairy foliage and a stem that is woody at the base. The leaves are arranged alternately along the stems and are usually trifoliate with

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 at the base of the

petiole Petiole may refer to: *Petiole (botany), the stalk of a leaf, attaching the blade to the stem *Petiole (insect anatomy) In entomology, petiole is the technical term for the narrow waist of some hymenopteran insects, especially ants, bees, and ...

and small stipellae at the base of the leaflets. The flowers are arranged in leaf axils, relatively large and showy, red, blue, violet or almost black with stipule-like

bract In botany, a bract is a modified or specialized leaf, associated with a reproductive structure such as a flower, inflorescence axis or cone scale. Bracts are usually different from foliage leaves in size, color, shape or texture. They also lo ...

s at the base but that sometimes fall of as the flowers open. The five

sepal A sepal () is a part of the flower of angiosperms (flowering plants). Usually green, sepals typically function as protection for the flower in bud, and often as support for the petals when in bloom., p. 106 Etymology The term ''sepalum'' ...

s are joined to form a bell-shaped tube with five teeth about the same length as the tube, the upper two partly fused. The

standard Standard may refer to: Symbols * Colours, standards and guidons, kinds of military signs * Standard (emblem), a type of a large symbol or emblem used for identification Norms, conventions or requirements * Standard (metrology), an object ...

petal is more or less round, the

wings A wing is a type of fin that produces both lift and drag while moving through air. Wings are defined by two shape characteristics, an airfoil section and a planform. Wing efficiency is expressed as lift-to-drag ratio, which compares the bene ...

are sickle-shaped and the

keel The keel is the bottom-most longitudinal structural element of a watercraft, important for stability. On some sailboats, it may have a fluid dynamics, hydrodynamic and counterbalancing purpose as well. The keel laying, laying of the keel is often ...

curves inwards. Nine of the lower

stamen The stamen (: stamina or stamens) is a part consisting of the male reproductive organs of a flower. Collectively, the stamens form the androecium., p. 10 Morphology and terminology A stamen typically consists of a stalk called the filament ...

s are fused into an open sheath and the

style Style, or styles may refer to: Film and television * ''Style'' (2001 film), a Hindi film starring Sharman Joshi, Riya Sen, Sahil Khan and Shilpi Mudgal * ''Style'' (2002 film), a Tamil drama film * ''Style'' (2004 film), a Burmese film * '' ...

is thread-like. The fruit is a flattened or cylindrical pod.

Taxonomy

The genus ''Kennedia'' was first formally described in 1805 by

Étienne Pierre Ventenat Étienne Pierre Ventenat (1 March 1757 – 13 August 1808) was a French botanist born in Limoges. He was the brother of naturalist Louis Ventenat (1765–1794). While employed as director of the ecclesiastic library Sainte-Geneviève in Paris, ...

in his book, ''Jardin de la Malmaison''. The name ''Kennedia'' honours John Kennedy, a partner in the firm of nurserymen,

Lee and Kennedy Lee and Kennedy were two families of prominent Scottish nurserymen in partnership for three generations at the Vineyard Nursery in Hammersmith, west of London. Contains biographical entries concerning the Lees and Kennedys. "For many years," wrote ...

Hammersmith, London Hammersmith is a district of West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It is the administrative centre of the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham, and identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London. It ...

Species list

The following is a list of ''Kennedia'' species accepted by the

Australian Plant Census The Australian Plant Census (APC) provides an online interface to currently accepted, published, scientific names of the vascular flora of Australia, as one of the output interfaces of the national government Integrated Biodiversity Information Sys ...

as of October 2021: *''

Kennedia beckxiana ''Kennedia beckxiana'', commonly known as Cape Arid kennedia, is a species of flowering plant in the family Fabaceae and is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It is a prostrate or twining shrub or a climber with trifoliate leaves an ...

F.Muell. Baron Sir Ferdinand Jacob Heinrich von Mueller, (; 30 June 1825 – 10 October 1896) was a German-Australian physician, geographer, and most notably, a botanist. He was appointed government botanist for the then colony of Victoria (state), Vic ...

– Cape Arid kennedia (W.A.) *''

Kennedia carinata ''Kennedia carinata'' is a species of flowering plant in the family Fabaceae and is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It is a prostrate shrub with trifoliate leaves and reddish-purple, pea-like flowers. Description ''Kennedia cari ...

'' (

Benth. George Bentham (22 September 1800 – 10 September 1884) was an English botanist, described by the weed botanist Duane Isely as "the premier systematic botanist of the nineteenth century". Born into a distinguished family, he initially studie ...

)

Van Houtte Van Houtte Inc. is a company based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada that processes, distributes and sells coffee and coffee related goods. They have expanded their product selection, which now includes tropical teas, sandwiches and salads. It was foun ...

(W.A.) *''

Kennedia coccinea ''Kennedia coccinea'', commonly known as coral vine, is a species of flowering plant in the family Fabaceae and is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It is a twining, climbing or prostrate shrub with trifoliate leaves and orange-pink ...

'' (

Curtis Curtis or Curtiss is a common English given name and surname of Anglo-Norman origin, deriving from the Old French ''curteis'' (Modern French">-4; we might wonder whether there's a point at which it's appropriate to talk of the beginnings of Fren ...

) Vent. – coral vine (W.A.) **''Kennedia coccinea'' subsp. ''calcaria'' Lally **''Kennedia coccinea'' (Curtis) Vent. subsp. ''coccinea'' **''Kennedia coccinea'' subsp. ''esotera'' Lally *'' Kennedia glabrata''

Lindl. John Lindley FRS (5 February 1799 – 1 November 1865) was an English botanist, gardener and orchidologist. Early years Born in Catton, near Norwich, England, John Lindley was one of four children of George and Mary Lindley. George Lindley ...

– Northcliffe kennedia (W.A.) *'' Kennedia lateritia'' F.Muell. (W.A., possibly naturalised in Vic.) *'' Kennedia microphylla''

Meisn. Carl Daniel Friedrich Meissner (1 November 1800 – 2 May 1874) was a Swiss botanist. Biography Born in Bern, Switzerland on 1 November 1800, he was christened Meisner but later changed the spelling of his name to Meissner. For most of his 40 ...

(W.A.) *''

Kennedia nigricans ''Kennedia nigricans'', commonly known as black kennedia, is a species of flowering plant in the family Fabaceae and is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It is a trailing or twining shrub or climber with trifoliate leaves and black ...

'' Lindl. – black coral pea (W.A., possibly naturalised in S.A. and Tas.) *'' Kennedia procurrens'' Benth. – purple running pea (Qld., N.S.W.) *'' Kennedia prorepens'' (F.Muell.) F.Muell. (W.A., N.T., S.A., Qld.) *''

Kennedia prostrata ''Kennedia prostrata'', commonly known as running postman, scarlet coral pea or scarlet runner, is a species of flowering plant in the family Fabaceae and is endemic to Australia. It is a prostrate or twining shrub with trifoliate leaves and, usu ...

'' R.Br. – running postman (W.A., S.A., N.S.W., Vic., Tas.) *'' Kennedia retrorsa'' Hemsl. (N.S.W.) *'' Kennedia rubicunda'' ( Schneev.) Vent. – dusky coral pea (Qld., N.S.W., Vic.) *'' Kennedia stirlingii'' R.Br. – bushy kennedia (W.A.)

Use in horticulture

Kennedias are frost-tolerant with a preference for light, well-drained soil in full sun. Once established they will spread into shaded areas. Western Australian species are heat-tolerant and make good covers for sheds, fences and walls with support. Many kennedias are vigorous climbers; ''K. rubicunda'' (commonly used in revegetation projects around Sydney, where it is indigenous) and ''K. nigricans'' can cover up to five metres of wall from tube in nine months. The most popular species in cultivation, ''K. prostrata'', is a much less vigorous

groundcover Groundcover or ground cover is any plant that grows low over an area of ground, which protects the topsoil from erosion and drought. In a terrestrial ecosystem, the ground cover forms the layer of vegetation below the shrub layer known as the ...

plant. They are propagated from seed during spring; in the warmer summer months they are easily propagated from cuttings. This robust genus can be heavily cut back after flowering to prevent invasive growth.

Description

Taxonomy

Species list

Use in horticulture

References

Further reading