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Chinese bushclover

Lespedeza cuneata

Summary 4

Lespedeza cuneata is a species of flowering plant in the legume family known by the common names Chinese bushclover and sericea lespedeza, or just sericea. It is native to Asia and eastern Australia and it is present elsewhere as an introduced species and sometimes an invasive plant.

Biology and spread 5

Chinese lespedeza begins growth from root crown buds at the base of last year’s stem. The flowers begin to develop in late July and continue through October. Within the Lespedeza genus there are no specialized structures for seed dispersal. Dispersal is aided by animals consuming the fruits and passing the seeds. A study on natural populations found that several species of Lespedeza comprise 1.5% to 86.8% of the annual diet of bobwhite quail in the southeastern U.S. Autumn dispersal is aided by the haying of infested fields.

Scarification is necessary for the germination of lespedeza seeds. Mature seeds of this genus remain viable for up to twenty years; one study found a germination rate of 60% after cold storage for 55 years. Seedlings may represent only 1% of the seeds actually available in the soil.

Ecological threat in the united states 6

Chinese lespedeza, sometimes called sericea lespedeza, is primarily a threat to open areas such as meadows, prairies, open woodlands, wetland borders and fields. Once it gains a foothold, it can crowd out native plants and develop an extensive seed bank in the soil, ensuring its long residence at a site. Established dense stands of lespedeza suppress native flora and its high tannin content makes it unpalatable to native wildlife as well as livestock.

Importance to livestock and wildlife 7

More info for the term: cover

Wildlife: Sericea lespedeza has been characterized as valuable wildlife food and cover [6,63,65]. Foliage is eaten by white-tailed deer, rabbits, and wild turkeys [125,159], and seeds are eaten by birds and rodents [56,159]. According to Sheldon and Causey [140], sericea lespedeza is a "good deer food", and in southeastern Kentucky, sericea lespedeza was common year-round in the diets of reintroduced elk [134]. Grasshopper sparrows and meadowlarks nest in sericea lespedeza [38].

In the southeastern United States, sericea lespedeza plantings have been recommended for wildlife, especially northern bobwhites [151]. Benefits of these plantings, however, have not always been realized. Northern bobwhite sometimes feed on sericea lespedeza seed in the Southeast, particularly in late spring when native food sources are scarce [152,153]. Northern bobwhite have also been observed rejecting sericea lespedeza seed in these same areas [154]. Davison [38] indicates that although sericea lespedeza seeds may be eaten by northern bobwhite, it is probably of little importance as a food source, at least in the "deep south". In a controlled feeding study, northern bobwhites fed sericea lespedeza experienced "critical" weight losses. Researchers expected that during severe winter conditions, sericea lespedeza would only sustain northern bobwhites a few days [120]. Over time, sericea lespedeza plantings can become thick and "rough", particularly on "rich lands". Frequent fire is suggested to maintain quality northern bobwhite habitat. Without fire, sericea lespedeza thickets become "havens" for hispid cotton rats and other "objectionable" rodents [151]. Dimmick [40] implied that dense sericea lespedeza stands are poor nesting habitat for nesting northern bobwhite.

Sericea lespedeza has fallen out of favor as a wildlife plant. While there are examples of wildlife utilizing sericea lespedeza, research supporting its importance is lacking [32,125]. Vogel [170] reported that sericea lespedeza is "considered low in value for wildlife by most biologists". Moreover, food and cover are also provided by native plants, or even nonnatives that are not invasive. Where sericea lespedeza is invasive (see Impacts below), it can limit the establishment and growth of other plant species, particularly natives, that provide a diversity of food and cover for a variety of native wildlife [125].

Livestock: Sericea lespedeza was introduced as a hay and pasture species in the eastern United States from around the 1920s to 1940s [5,110,125]. Although its subsequent use as hay and forage has apparently not been widespread, there are still contemporary advocates for its utilization (e.g., [5]). Sericea lespedeza was a recommended pasture species in the southeastern United States in particular, where its deep rooting habit allowed for growth and survival through summer droughts [65,133]. Root growth of sericea lespedeza in acid soils is less inhibited than that of alfalfa (Medicago sativa) [87], and sericea lespedeza hay often cures more rapidly than other common hay species [65]. In addition to cattle [64,65,125,133], domestic goats graze sericea lespedeza [51]. Using livestock to control sericea lespedeza is discussed in the Biological control section below.

A number of sericea lespedeza cultivars have been developed, such as 'Arlington', 'Serala', 'AU Lotan', 'AU Donnelly', 'AU Grazer' and 'Interstate', for low-input cattle forage and other uses [5,65,110,117,133]. Stems on these plants are generally shorter, finer, leafier, and more numerous than those of common sericea lespedeza [65,110]. Many of these cultivars were developed with the intent to create a more palatable forage, with lower levels of undesirable tannins (see Palatability and/or nutritional value below) [5,115,117].

Palatability and/or nutritional value: While sericea lespedeza has been promoted as a hay and pasture species [5,110,125], it often produces low-quality forage. Sericea lespedeza contains condensed tannins that can reduce digestibility [159]. Grazing and haying are generally limited to young and tender plants (<12-18 inches (30-46 cm) tall) [65,167,170]. Shoots become tough and fibrous with age. As plants mature, protein contents and leaf:stem ratios decrease and tannin contents increase [65]. Palatability of sericea lespedeza decreases for wildlife and cattle after midsummer [37], but the height to which shoots retain palatability is positively related to site fertility [65]. Persistence of the previous season's dead stems can discourage grazing (Koger and others 2002 cited in [44]).

Researchers evaluated the composition of sericea lespedeza from the Appalachian Foothills, the Piedmont Plateau, and the Coastal Plain regions of Alabama. Nitrogen averaged 23.9g/kg, neutral-detergent fiber was 560 g/kg, acid-detergent fiber was 386 g/kg, lignin was 139 g/kg, and cellulose was 242 g/kg [15].

Cover value: Sericea lespedeza can provide cover for wildlife [6,38,63,65], including rabbits and northern bobwhite [38]. Although sericea lespedeza provides cover for some wildlife species, it may also inhibit establishment and/or growth of native plants and reduce the diversity of cover habitat [32]. In the Impacts section below, this and other invasive characteristics are described.

Other uses and values 8

More info for the terms: cover, reclamation

Sericea lespedeza has been planted for wildlife cover and forage, as well as revegetation, erosion control, and soil improvement in many areas of the central and eastern United States [6,39,63,65,72,125]. It has been planted along agricultural field borders as a wildlife cover species [65] and on disturbed soils of highway embankments, utility rights-of-way, and construction area disposal sites [65,71,74,159]. It has been used for reclamation of surface coal mine sites in the eastern United States [65,80,100,118,170]. For revegetation purposes, sericea lespedeza can provide long-term cover with little to no maintenance requirements [170] and often survives on poor soils where other legumes do not [6].

Although deliberate plantings for honeybees were not explicitly reported, sericea lespedeza is considered a good honey plant [159].

Sources and Credits

  1. (c) Anita, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), http://www.flickr.com/photos/61897811@N00/5199976427
  2. (c) Kerry Wixted, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), https://www.flickr.com/photos/kwixted0/3837615721/
  3. (c) Dendroica cerulea, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), https://www.flickr.com/photos/dendroica/15007563289/
  4. Adapted by Jonathan (JC) Carpenter from a work by (c) Wikipedia, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lespedeza_cuneata
  5. (c) Unknown, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), http://eol.org/data_objects/23204947
  6. (c) Unknown, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), http://eol.org/data_objects/22948673
  7. Public Domain, http://eol.org/data_objects/24629394
  8. Public Domain, http://eol.org/data_objects/24629395

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