Clitoria mariana
Common Name(s):
- Phonetic Spelling
- klih-TOH-ree-uh mar-ee-AH-nuh
- Description
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Butterfly Pea is a low-growing, dense, evergreen, perennial twining vine in the pea family that is native to the southeastern United States and often found in dry open forests or rocky or sandy woodlands. This plant has trailing stems, but seldom climbs and stays close to the ground. The twining vine is occasionally erect and boasts large, showy, lavender-pink, pea-like flowers. The flowers blossom from spring into the fall and are usually solitary, but occasionally up to 3. The blossoms appear in the axils of the plant's compound leaves.
This plant does best in dry sandy or loamy soil with good drainage. It prefers light shade, but will tolerate full sun and nutritionally poor soils. It is capable of fixing nitrogen into the soil.
This lovely plant is noted for its lavender-blue flowers with their large, rounded banner and trifoliate leaves, dark green above and a light, grayish-green beneath.
Quick ID Hints:
- Young stems,leaves covered with reddish-brown hairs
- Funnel-form flowers in spring, single or hose-in-hose
- Low, dense shrub with crowded evergreen leaves in tiers
- Calyx rounded, 5-lobed, short
Diseases, Insect Pests, and Other Plant Problems:
No known diseases or insect pests. The plant is habitat dependent and can be eliminated from an area by a change in land use or by competitive plants.
- See this plant in the following landscape:
- Cultivars / Varieties:
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- Tags:
- Cultivars / Varieties:
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Attributes:
- Genus:
- Clitoria
- Species:
- mariana
- Family:
- Leguminosae
- Life Cycle:
- Perennial
- Country Or Region Of Origin:
- Eastern and South Central United States west to New Mexico.
- Distribution:
- United States and southern Asia.
- Wildlife Value:
- Attracts butterflies, birds, and moths. Larval host to the long-tailed skipper.
- Climbing Method:
- Twining
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Whole Plant Traits:
- Plant Type:
- Native Plant
- Perennial
- Vine
- Wildflower
- Woody Plant Leaf Characteristics:
- Broadleaf Evergreen
- Habit/Form:
- Creeping
- Dense
- Spreading
- Growth Rate:
- Medium
- Maintenance:
- Low
- Texture:
- Fine
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Cultural Conditions:
- Light:
- Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day)
- Partial Shade (Direct sunlight only part of the day, 2-6 hours)
- Soil Texture:
- Loam (Silt)
- Sand
- Soil pH:
- Acid (<6.0)
- Alkaline (>8.0)
- Neutral (6.0-8.0)
- Soil Drainage:
- Good Drainage
- Occasionally Dry
- NC Region:
- Coastal
- Mountains
- Piedmont
- USDA Plant Hardiness Zone:
- 6a, 6b, 7a, 7b, 8a, 8b, 9a, 9b
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Fruit:
- Fruit Type:
- Legume
- Fruit Description:
- The fruit is a flattened legume. The seed are sticky.
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Flowers:
- Flower Color:
- Blue
- Pink
- Purple/Lavender
- White
- Flower Inflorescence:
- Raceme
- Flower Value To Gardener:
- Long Bloom Season
- Flower Bloom Time:
- Spring
- Summer
- Flower Size:
- 1-3 inches
- Flower Description:
- Flowers bloom from May through September. This plant has 2 inch, pale lavender-blue to violet flowers. It has a large rounded standard which is notched at the tip. The keel and white petals are short. This plant has 1 to 3 flowers per stalk that arise from the axils of leaves. Small bud-like flowers are produced late in the season.
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Leaves:
- Woody Plant Leaf Characteristics:
- Broadleaf Evergreen
- Leaf Color:
- Green
- Leaf Feel:
- Smooth
- Leaf Arrangement:
- Alternate
- Leaf Shape:
- Lanceolate
- Ovate
- Leaf Margin:
- Entire
- Hairs Present:
- No
- Leaf Length:
- 1-3 inches
- Leaf Description:
- Stalked leaves are divided into 1 to 2 inch egg-shaped or lance-shaped leaflets. Leaves are alternate, petiolate, and trifoliate. The leaflets are ovate to lanceolate in outline, glabrous above and glabrous or short pubescent beneath, with entire margins.
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Stem:
- Stem Color:
- Green
- Stem Is Aromatic:
- No
- Stem Form:
- Straight
- Stem Surface:
- Smooth (glabrous)
- Stem Description:
- Stems are erect to reclining or trailing, glabrous to sparsely pubescent with short, fine, curved hairs, and unbranched or branched from near the base. The stems are green in color.
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Landscape:
- Landscape Location:
- Hanging Baskets
- Woodland
- Landscape Theme:
- Children's Garden
- Native Garden
- Pollinator Garden
- Design Feature:
- Border
- Attracts:
- Butterflies
- Moths
- Resistance To Challenges:
- Dry Soil