Senna artemisioides (Gaudichaud ex A. P. de Candolle) Randell, Fabaceae

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Present on Pacific Islands?  no

Primarily a threat at high elevations?  no

Risk assessment results:  High risk, score: 9 (Go to the risk assessment).

Other Latin names:  Cassia artemisioides Gaudich. ex DC.; Cassia circinnata Benth.; Cassia desolata F. Muell.; Cassia eremophila Benth.; Cassia nemophila A. Cunn. ex Vogel; Cassia sturtii R. Br.

Common name(s): [more details]

English: blunt-leaf cassia, dense cassia, desert cassia, feathery cassia, punty, silver cassia, wormwood cassia, wormwood senna

Habit:  shrub

Description:  "Evergreen shrub, 3-8 ft.  Flowers cup-shaped, yellow, fragrant; fertile stamens 10, anthers dark brown, in axillary clusters; pods small, flat, brown.  Leaves pinnate; leaflets variable among subspecies, usually 2-8 pairs, flat or rolled into needles or replaced by phyllodes (flattened petioles), gray-green, downy, 2-3 in. long.  Stems covered with light gray hairs.  Several subspecies with quite variable foliage were previously considered to be a group of complex hybrids"  (Llamas, 2003; p. 207).

Habitat/ecology:  "Moderately drought tolererant.  Open, well-drained soil, full to part sun.  Suitable for hot, arid regions"  (Llamas, 2003; p. 207).

Propagation:  Seed

Native range:  Australia, cultivated elsewhere (GRIN).

Presence:

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)	Australia (continental)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011) South Australia, Victoria, Western Australia
Australia Australia (continental)	New South Wales	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
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)
Singapore Singapore	Singapore (Republic of)	introduced cultivated	Chong, Kwek Yan/Tan, Hugh T. W./Corlett, Richard T. (2009) (p. 24) Cultivated only
United States (west coast) United States (west coast states)	USA (California)	introduced	U.S. Dept. Agr., Nat. Res. Cons. Serv. (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)	United States (other states)	introduced	U.S. Dept. Agr., Nat. Res. Cons. Serv. (2011) Arizona

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

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

Taxonomic information about Senna artemisioides 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.

Llamas, Kirsten Albrecht. 2003. Tropical flowering plants: a guide to identification and cultivation. Timber Press. 423 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.