Sesbania is a genus of flowering plants in the pea family, Fabaceae, and the only genus found in tribe Sesbanieae. Riverhemp is a common name for plants in this genus. Notable species include the rattlebox (Sesbania punicea), spiny sesbania (Sesbania bispinosa), and Sesbania sesban, which is used in cooking. Plants of this genus, some of which are aquatic, can be used in alley cropping to increase the soil's nitrogen content. The species of rhizobia responsible for nitrogen fixation in Sesbania rostrata is Azorhizobium caulinodans.
Some 60 species are currently accepted, with about 39 still unresolved. The genus is native to tropical and subtropical regions around the world, in the Americas from the southern United States to northern Argentina, in sub-Saharan Africa, in southern Asia, and in New Guinea, Australia, and the Pacific. The largest number of species are found in Africa, and the remainder in Australia, Hawaii, and Asia.
Fossil record Fossil seed pods from the upper Oligocene resembling Sesbania have been found in the Hungarian locality of Eger Wind-brickyard. The fossil species grew in a swampy and riparian environment.Distribution of Legumes in the Tertiary of Hungary by L. Hably, Advances in Legume Systematics: Part 4, The Fossil Record, Ed. P.S. Herendeen & Dilcher, 1992, The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew,
List of species 60 species are accepted, organized into three sections: Section Glottidium (Desvaux) Lavin Sesbania vesicaria (Jacq.) Elliott Section Daubentonia (DC.) Bentham Sesbania drummondii (Rydb.) Cory Sesbania cavanillesii S.Watson Sesbania macroptera Sesbania punicea (Cav.) Benth. – rattlebox Sesbania virgata (Cav.) Poir. – wand riverhemp Section Sesbania Adans.
Sesbania benthamiana Sesbania bispinosa (Jacq.) W.Wight Sesbania brachycarpa Sesbania brevipeduncula Sesbania campylocarpa Sesbania cannabina (Retz.) Poir. Sesbania chippendalei Sesbania cinerascens Sesbania coccinea Sesbania coerulescens Sesbania concolor Sesbania dalzielii Sesbania dummeri Sesbania erubescens Sesbania exasperata Sesbania formosa Sesbania goetzei Sesbania grandiflora (L.) Poir. Sesbania greenwayi Sesbania hepperi Sesbania herbacea (Mill.) McVaugh – bigpod sesbania Sesbania hirtistyla Sesbania javanica Sesbania keniensis Sesbania leptocarpa Sesbania macowaniana Sesbania macrantha Sesbania madagascariensis Sesbania melanocaulis Sesbania microphylla Sesbania mossambicensis Sesbania notialis Sesbania oligosperma Sesbania pachycarpa
Sesbania paucisemina Sesbania procumbens
Sesbania quadrata Sesbania rostrata
Sesbania sericea (Willd.) Link – papagayo Sesbania sesban (L.) Merr. – Egyptian riverhemp Sesbania simpliciuscula Sesbania somalensis Sesbania speciosa Sesbania sphaerocarpa Sesbania subalata Sesbania sudanica Sesbania tetraptera Sesbania tomentosa Hook. & Arn. – Ōhai (Hawaii) Sesbania transvaalensis J.B.Gillett
Incertae Sedis
Sesbania burbidgeae Sesbania emerus (Aubl.) Urban – coffeebean Sesbania longifolia Sesbania marchionica Sesbania muelleri Sesbania uliginosa Sesbania wildemannii
Phylogeny Modern molecular phylogenetics suggest the following relationships between the species of Sesbania:
References
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