Clitoria ternatea L.

  • Authority

    Acevedo-Rodríguez, Pedro & collaborators. 1996. Flora of St. John, U.S. Virgin Islands. Mem. New York Bot. Gard. 78: 1-581.

  • Family

    Fabaceae

  • Scientific Name

    Clitoria ternatea L.

  • Description

    Species Description - Twining vine to 2 m long. Leaves imparipinnate; leaflets 5-7, opposite, 1.5-4.5 x 1-3.5 cm, elliptic or seldom ovate or oblong, chartaceous, puberulent, the apex mucronate, obtuse, the base obtuse, the margins entire; rachis 2-7 cm long; petioles 2-4 cm long; stipules linear, straw-colored, persistent. Rowers solitary on short peduncles; bracts ovate, persistent. Calyx 15-20 mm long, greenish, puberulent, the sepals nearly equal; corolla bluish violet, the standard widely ovate, 3.5-5 cm long, notched at apex, the wings and keel clawed, much shorter than the standard. Legume 9-11 x 1 cm, oblong, ribbed along both margins, long-beaked at apex, dehiscent by twisting valves. Seeds numerous, 5-6 mm long, oblong, flattened, dark brown.

  • Discussion

    Common names: blue vine, butterfly pea.

  • Distribution

    Spontaneous after cultivation. Johnson Bay (A2623). Also on St. Croix, St. Thomas, and Tortola; native to the Old World but cultivated and naturalized throughout the tropics.

    Tortola Virgin Islands South America| Saint Thomas Virgin Islands of the United States South America| Saint Croix Virgin Islands of the United States South America|