Xeriscape Landscaping Plants For The Arizona Desert Environment
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Shrubs

Silver Leaf Cassia, Senna phyllodinea

Silver Leaf Cassia, Senna phyllodinea, October 4, 2006, Peoria, Arizona

Silver Leaf Cassia Leaves Senna phyllodinea	Silver Leaf Cassia Leaf Senna phyllodinea
Silver Leaf Cassia Flowers Senna phyllodinea	Silver Leaf Cassia Seed Pods Senna phyllodinea

Silver Leaf Cassia Senna phyllodinea, Legume or Pea Family ( Leguminosae ), Silver Leaf Cassia. Also called . A Spreading bushy shrub to 6 feet high. Pinnate leaves are present only in the juvenile phase and the leaves become reduced to phyllodes in the mature plants. The phyllodes are falcate, 1/2 - 3 inches long, 1/8 - 3/5 inch wide, silky with dense appressed silvery hairs (becoming weathered as they age). The flowers are in axillary sub-umbellate racemes near the ends of the branches; the 5 large yellow petals are glabrous, about 1/2 inch long, with reddish veins, and 10 stamens with large orange anthers.. The slightly curved pods, 3/4 to 1 1/3 inches long, are tipped by a stiff point about 1/8 inch long. They pop open with force when mature, throwing the seeds some distance from the plant. The pinkish brown seeds are pearshaped, deeply wrinkled, and flattened, about l/8 inch long. Height: 4 - 6 feet tall and the same width. Flowers: Yellow, 5 large yellow petals about 1/2 inch long, with red - brown veins, 10 stamens with large orange anthers. Blooming Time: March - October. Fruit: Silver gray curved leaves 1 - 2 inches long. Leaves: Dull green pinnate leaves with 2 to 3 pairs of elliptical leaflets. Found: Tropics of Australia. Landscape plant in California and Arizona. Elevation: 0 - 2,500 Feet. Habitat: Tropics of Australia. Miscellaneous: Photos Taken October 4, 2006, Peoria, Arizona. Flowering Photos Taken October 9, 2006, Glendale, Arizona