Indigofera linifolia (L. f.) Retz., Fabaceae

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Present on Pacific Islands?  yes

Primarily a threat at high elevations?  no

Common name(s): [more details]

Chinese: dan ye mu lan

Habit:  herb

Description:  "Shrublets or perennial herbs, prostrate or erect, many branched. Stems usually 4-angled, with appressed white medifixed symmetrically 2-branched trichomes. Stipules narrowly triangular, 2-3 x ca. 0.2 mm, partly adnate with petiole. Leaves simple or 1-foliolate; petiole 2.5-3 mm, with dense appressed medifixed trichomes; stipels linear, ca. 0.5 mm, glabrous; leaf or leaflet blade usually linear but sometimes elliptic to ovate-elliptic, 0.5-3 cm x 2-4 mm, both surfaces with appressed medifixed trichomes but abaxially more densely so, secondary veins not visible, base narrowly cuneate, apex acuminate and mucronate. Racemes 1-1.5 cm; peduncle ca. 0.5 mm; bracts ovate, ca. 1 x 1 mm, with dense appressed medifixed trichomes. Pedicel 0.5-1 mm. Calyx with dense appressed medifixed trichomes; tube ca. 0.5 mm; teeth narrowly triangular, ca. 2 mm. Corolla red; standard elliptic, 4-4.5 x 2-2.5 mm, outside hairy; wings 3.5-4 x ca. 1.5 mm, glabrous; keel 3.5-4.5 x 1-1.5 mm, glabrous. Stamens 3-4 mm; anthers glabrous. Ovary with minute appressed trichomes, with 1 ovule. Legume ovoid, ca. 2 x 2 mm, with dense appressed white medifixed 2-branched trichomes; endocarp not blotched. Seed 1 per legume, cubic, ca. 1 x 1 mm"  (Flora of China online).

Habitat/ecology:  In New Caledonia, "d'introduction probablement assez récente, cette plante est très commune au bord des routes le long de la côte Ouest" (MacKee, 1994; p. 85). In Queensland, Australia, "widespread, but not common, usually on sandy soils" (Stanley and Ross, 1981; vol. 1, p. 289).

Propagation:  Seed

Native range:  Northeast tropical Africa, temperate and tropical Asia, Malesia, Australia (GRIN).

Presence:

Pacific
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
New Caledonia New Caledonia Archipelago	Île Grande Terre	introduced invasive	Gargominy, Oliver/Bouchet, Philipe/Pascal, Michel/Jaffre, Tanguy/Tourneu, Jean-Christophe (1996) (p. 382) Très commune au bord des routes le long de la côte Ouest.
New Caledonia New Caledonia Archipelago	Île Grande Terre	introduced invasive	Tassin, Jacques (2005)
New Caledonia New Caledonia Archipelago	Île Grande Terre	introduced invasive	MacKee, H. S. (1994) (p. 85) Vouchers cited: MacKee 4640, MacKee 6510, MacKee 11841, MacKee 11878, MacKee 22103
Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea (eastern New Guinea Island)	Papua New Guinea (eastern New Guinea Island)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
Philippines Philippine Islands	Philippine Islands	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
Philippines Philippine Islands	Philippine Islands		Merrill, Elmer D. (1923) (p. 275) On dry rocky and grassy banks and slopes at low and medium altitudes.

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)	Northern Territory	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
Australia Australia (continental)	Queensland	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
Cambodia Cambodia	Cambodia (Kingdom of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
China China	China (People's Republic of)	native	Zhengyi, Wu/Raven, Peter H./Deyuan, Hong (2011) "Grasslands on dry slopes, sunny riversides; below 1200 m".
Indonesia Indonesia	Indonesia (Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
Japan Ryukyu Islands	Ryukyu Islands	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
Taiwan Taiwan	Taiwan Island	native	Zhengyi, Wu/Raven, Peter H./Deyuan, Hong (2011) "Grasslands on dry slopes, sunny riversides; below 1200 m".
Thailand Thailand	Thailand (Kingdom of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
Vietnam Vietnam	Vietnam (Socialist Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)

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)

Additional information:
Additional online information about Indigofera linifolia is available from the Hawaiian Ecosystems at Risk project (HEAR).

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

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

References:

Gargominy, Oliver/Bouchet, Philipe/Pascal, Michel/Jaffre, Tanguy/Tourneu, Jean-Christophe. 1996. Conséquences des introductions d'espèces animales et végétales sur la biodiversité en Nouvelle-Calédonie. Rev. Ecol. (Terre Vie) 51:375-401.

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

MacKee, H. S. 1994. Catalogue des plantes introduites et cultivées en Nouvelle-Calédonie. Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, Paris, 164 p.

Merrill, Elmer D. 1923. An enumeration of Philippine flowering plants, vol. 2 [reprint]. Bureau of Printing, Manila. 530 pp.

Stanley, T. D./Ross, E. M. 1989. Flora of south-eastern Queensland. Queensland Department of Primary Industries, Misc. Pub. 81020. 3 Volumes.

Swarbrick, John T. 1997. Weeds of the Pacific Islands. Technical paper no. 209. South Pacific Commission, Noumea, New Caledonia. 124 pp.

Tassin, Jacques. 2005. Jacques Tassin (IAC-CIRAD), personal communication.

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

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