Crotalaria juncea L., Fabaceae

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Present on Pacific Islands?  yes

Primarily a threat at high elevations?  no

Risk assessment results:  Evaluate, score: 1 (Go to the risk assessment)

Common name(s): [more details]

Chinese: shu ma

English: Indian hemp, Madras hemp, sann hemp, sunn crotalaria, sunn hemp

Filipino: karay-kagay, putokputukan

French: chanvre du Bengale, crotolaire jonciforme

Hindi: san

Spanish: cáñamo san

Habit:  herb

Description:  "An annual herb up to 2.5 m tall; stems erect, ribbed, subappressed pubescent; leaves simple, oblong to oblanceolate, apex acute to obtuse, stipules filiform, ca. 2 mm long; flowers 15-20 mm long, in terminal inflorescences 10-25 cm long, bracts narrowly lanceolate, 3-5 mm long, calyx 15-20 mm long, weakly bilabiate, the lobes 3-4 times as long as the tube, velutinous; petals 15-25 mm long, bright yellow, with dark red or brown streaks, the standard to 25 mm long, the keel to 20 mm long, with a twisted beak, the wings shorter than the keel; pods cylindrical 2.5-3.5 (-5.5) cm long, velutinous, sessile; seeds 6-15 per pod, cordiform, 4-6 mm long, light brown to black"  (Wagner et al., 1997; pp. 56-57).

Habitat/ecology:  "Although generally considered a tropical or subtropical crop, sunn hemp is drought resistant and is widely adaptable to different soil types. Its tolerance to salt and frost is low. For fibre production, light, loamy well-drained soils are preferred; on low-lying or clay soils it achieves vigorous growth, but the bast fibre is coarser and yields are lower. PH of 5-8.4 is a suitable range. Mean annual temperature: 9-30 deg. C. Mean annual rainfall: 170-1 500 mm. Altitude: 0-300 m"  (Agroforestree database).

Propagation:  Seed

Native range:  Considered native to India, it is widely cultivated as a cover crop and for fiber  (Wagner et al., 1997; p. 57).

Presence:

Pacific
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
Federated States of Micronesia Yap Islands	Yap (Waqab) Island	introduced	Lorence, David H./Flynn, Tim (2008) (p. 13)
Fiji Fiji Islands	Viti Levu Island	introduced cultivated	Smith, Albert C. (1985) (p. 269) Voucher cited: DA (FDA 13401)
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	Hawai‘i (Big) Island	introduced invasive cultivated	Wagner, Warren L./Shannon, Robynn K./Herbst, Derral R. (1997) (p. 57) Voucher cited: Wagner et al. 6392 (US)
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	Kaua‘i Island	introduced cultivated	Staples, George W./Imada, Clyde T./Herbst, Derral R. (2003) (p. 11) Voucher cited: Imada 2001-71 (BISH)
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	Maui Island	introduced invasive	Staples, George W./Imada, Clyde T./Herbst, Derral R. (2003) (p. 11) East Maui. Voucher cited: R. Hobdy 3593 (BISH)
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	O‘ahu Island	introduced invasive cultivated	Wagner, Warren L./Shannon, Robynn K./Herbst, Derral R. (1997) (p. 57) Voucher cited: Sasakawa s.n. (BISH)
Marshall Islands Ratak Chain	Majuro (Mãjro) Atoll	extirpated	Vander Velde, Nancy (2003) (p. 96)
Niue Niue	Niue Island	introduced cultivated	Sykes, W. R. (1970) (p. 148) Voucher cited: CHR 150545
Palau Palau (main island group)	Palau Islands (main island group)		Lorence, David H./Flynn, Tim (2010) (p. 29)
Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea (eastern New Guinea Island)	Papua New Guinea (eastern New Guinea Island)	introduced	ILDIS Co-ordinating Centre (2011)

Pacific Rim
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
Australia Australia (continental)	New South Wales	introduced	ILDIS Co-ordinating Centre (2011)
Australia Australia (continental)	Northern Territory	introduced	ILDIS Co-ordinating Centre (2011)
Australia Australia (continental)	Queensland	introduced	ILDIS Co-ordinating Centre (2011)
China China	China (People's Republic of)	introduced invasive cultivated	Zhengyi, Wu/Raven, Peter H./Deyuan, Hong (2011) "Sparse forests, along trails; below 100-2000 m".
China China	Hong Kong	introduced cultivated	Wu, Te-lin (2001) (p. 141)
Japan Japan	Japan (country)	introduced	Mito, Toshikazu/Uesugi, Tetsuro (2004) (p. 184)
Singapore Singapore	Singapore (Republic of)	introduced invasive	Chong, Kwek Yan/Tan, Hugh T. W./Corlett, Richard T. (2009) (p. 29) Naturalised
Taiwan Taiwan	Taiwan Island	introduced invasive cultivated	Zhengyi, Wu/Raven, Peter H./Deyuan, Hong (2011) "Sparse forests, along trails; below 100-2000 m".

Indian Ocean
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
La Réunion (France) La Réunion Island	La Réunion Island	introduced	ILDIS Co-ordinating Centre (2011)
India (Indian Ocean offshore islands) Andaman Islands	Andaman Islands	introduced	ILDIS Co-ordinating Centre (2011)
Mauritius Mautitius Islands (Mauritius and Rodrigues)	Mauritius Island	introduced	ILDIS Co-ordinating Centre (2011)
Seychelles Seychelles Islands	Seychelles Islands	introduced	ILDIS Co-ordinating Centre (2011)

Also reported from
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
United States (continental except west coast) United States (other states)	USA (Florida)	introduced	U.S. Dept. Agr., Nat. Res. Cons. Serv. (2011)

Additional information:
Fact sheet from the Agroforestree database.
Fact sheet from the World Agroforestry Centre
Fact sheet from Tropical Forages.
Fact sheet from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN.
Plant Guide from USDA-NRCS (PDF format).

Additional online information about Crotalaria juncea is available from the Hawaiian Ecosystems at Risk project (HEAR).

Information about Crotalaria juncea as a weed (worldwide references) may be available from the Global Compendium of Weeds (GCW).

Taxonomic information about Crotalaria juncea may be available from the Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN).

References:

Chong, Kwek Yan/Tan, Hugh T. W./Corlett, Richard T. 2009. A checklist of the total vascular plant flora of Singapore: native, naturalised and cultivated species. Raffles Museum of Biodiversity Research, National University of Singapore. 273 pp.

ILDIS Co-ordinating Centre. 2011. International Legume Database & Information Service. Online searchable database.

International Center for Research in Agroforestry. 2008. AgroForestryTree database: a tree species reference and selection guide (online resource). World Agroforestry Centre.

Lorence, David H./Flynn, Tim. 2008. Checklist of the plants of Yap. Unpublished checklist. National Tropical Botanical Garden, Lawai, Hawai‘i. 20 pp.

Lorence, David H./Flynn, Tim. 2010. Checklist of the plants of Palau. Unpublished checklist. National Tropical Botanical Garden, Lawai, Hawai‘i. 44 pp.

Mito, Toshikazu/Uesugi, Tetsuro. 2004. Invasive alien species in Japan: the status quo and the new regulation for prevention of their adverse effects. Global Environmental Research 8(2)/2004: 171-191.

Smith, Albert C. 1985. Flora Vitiensis nova: a new flora of Fiji. National Tropical Botanical Garden, Lawai, Kauai, Hawaii. Volume 3. 758 pp.

Staples, George W./Imada, Clyde T./Herbst, Derral R. 2003. New Hawaiian plant records for 2001. In: Evenhuis, Neal L. and Eldredge, Lucius G., eds. Records of the Hawaii Biological Survey for 2001-2002. Part 2: Notes. Bishop Museum Occasional Papers. 74:7-21.

Sykes, W. R. 1970. Contributions to the flora of Niue. New Zealand Department of Scientific and Industrial Research Bulletin 200, Wellington. 321 pp.

U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. 2011. National Genetic Resources Program. Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN). Online searchable database.

U.S. Dept. Agr., Nat. Res. Cons. Serv. 2011. The PLANTS Database. National Plant Data Center, Baton Rouge, LA 70874-4490 USA.

Vander Velde, Nancy. 2003. The vascular plants of Majuro Atoll, Republic of the Marshall Islands. Smithsonian Institution, Atoll Research Bulletin No. 503:1-141.

Wagner, Warren L./Shannon, Robynn K./Herbst, Derral R. 1997. Contributions to the flora of Hawai‘i. In: Evenhuis, Neal L. and Miller, Scott, E., eds. Records of the Hawaii Biological Survey for 1996. Part 1: Articles. Bishop Museum Occasional Papers. 48:51-65.

Wu, Te-lin. 2001. Check List of Hong Kong Plants. Hong Kong Herbarium and the South China Institute of Botany. Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department Bulletin 1 (revised). 384 pp.

Zhengyi, Wu/Raven, Peter H./Deyuan, Hong. 2011. Flora of China (online resource).