| Etymology | Genus | Ash coloured; referring to grey down on leaves |
|---|---|---|
| Species | Night-blooming | |
| Family | Fabaceae | |
| Synonyms | - | |
| Common Names | Petai Balong Kecil | |
| Status | Exotic: Naturalised | |
| Form | Shrub | |
| Native Distribution | Africa | |
Diagnostics:
Tephrosia noctiflora is a shrub to 2m tall. The compound leaves are imparipinnate, with each leaflet narrow and smokey green, especially from the underside. The inflorescenes are white with a pink centre, and only opens towards the evening.
Interesting Facts:
Petai Balong Kecil is used as a cover crop and green manure plant. It is also sometimes planted as a contour hedge; and used as fish poison (Sosef & van der Maesen, 2016).
A wild Petai Balong Kecil growing out of a cultivated bush outside Hougang Mall (2020).
Compound leaf.
Leaflets underside.
Inflorescence.
Legume.
References
Sosef MSM & van der Maesen LJG (2016) Tephrosia noctiflora (PROSEA). Plant Resources of South East Asia. https://uses.plantnet-project.org/en/Category:PROSEA. Accessed on 10-Jul-2020.
Author: Siyang
Posted: 2020-07-09 / Modified: 2020-07-10