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Crotalaria spectabilis
Also called Rattlebox, Showy Crotalaria, Showy Rattlepod, Silent Rattlepod, Rattle Box
Showy rattlebox is a fast-growing annual or short-lived perennial legume from South Asia and Southeast Asia, grown as a green manure and widely naturalized as a weed in tropical and subtropical regions. It is best kept in full sun and well-drained soil, and it is toxic to livestock.
Crotalaria spectabilis, the showy rattlebox or showy rattlepod, is a species of flowering plant in the pea family Fabaceae. It is native to the Indian Subcontinent, southern China, and Southeast Asia. It is a perennial herb that grows up to 0.6–1.5 m (24–59 in) tall. It grows in montane grasslands, along forest edges, and within meadows. It was introduced (originally as a green manure) to most of the world's tropics and subtropics and is now a serious agricultural pest species. It is toxic to livestock, causing liver damage.
Crotalaria spectabilis is insect pollinated and is recorded to have been visited in northern Florida by Lasioglossum apopkense.
Birdflower · Sunn hemp · Birdflower · Longbeak rattlebox · Smooth rattlebox · Rattleweed
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Crotalaria spectabilis by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.
The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
