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Psoralea pedunculata

Common name:	Sampson's Snakeroot	Family:	Leguminosae
Author:	(Mill.)Vall.	Botanical references:	43, 235, 274
Synonyms:	Psoralea psoralioides ((Walter.)Cory.)
Known Hazards:	Although no specific mention of toxicity for this species has been found, at least some members of this genus contain furanocoumarins, these substances can cause photosensitivity in some people[65].
Range:	Eastern N. America - Virginia to Ohio, Illinois and Kansas, south to Florida and Texas.
Habitat:	Damp or dry sandy soils in open woods, clearings and fields[43, 274].
Edibility Rating (1-5):	0	Medicinal Rating (1-5):	1

Other Possible Synonyms:	From various places across the web, may not be correct. See below.
	Hedysarum pedunculatum[B,P] Orbexilum gracile[B,P] Orbexilum pedunculatum var. eglandulosum[B,P] Orbexilum pedunculatum var. gracile[B,P] Orbexilum pedunculatum var. pedunculatum[B,P] Orbexilum pedunculatum var. psoralioides[B,P] P. psoralioides var. eglandulosa[B,P] P. psoralioides var. gracilis[B,P]
Other Common Names:	From various places around the Web, may not be correct. See below.
	Sampson's Snakeroot [P],
Epithets:	From a Dictionary of Botanical Epithets
	pedunculata = with a stalk;
Systematics:	From a USDA Plants Database
	Order: Fabales. Renamed to Fabaceae -- Pea family
Other Range Info:	From the Ethnobotany Database
	Us(Amerindian)

Physical Characteristics

Perennial growing to 1m. . The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs) and are pollinated by Insects. It can fix Nitrogen. We rate it 0/5 for edibility and 1/5 for medicinal use.

The plant prefers light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils and requires well-drained soil. The plant prefers acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils. It cannot grow in the shade. It requires dry or moist soil.

Habitats and Possible Locations

Woodland, Cultivated Beds, Sunny Edge.

Edible Uses

None known

Medicinal Uses

Disclaimer

Bitter; Tonic.

Bitter tonic.

Other Uses

None known

Cultivation details

We have very little information for this species and do not know if it will be hardy in Britain, though judging by its native range it should succeed outdoors in many parts of the country. Some botanists have moved this plant into a different genus, where it is called Orbexilum pedunculatum[274]. The following notes are based on the general needs of the genus.
Succeeds in an ordinary garden soil[1]. Requires a well-drained soil in a sunny position[200].
Plants are very intolerant of root disturbance, they are best planted out into their permanent positions whilst still small[200].
This species has a symbiotic relationship with certain soil bacteria, these bacteria form nodules on the roots and fix atmospheric nitrogen. Some of this nitrogen is utilized by the growing plant but some can also be used by other plants growing nearby[200].

Propagation

Pre-soak the seed for 24 hours in warm water and then sow in early to mid spring in a greenhouse. Either sow the seed in individual pots or pot up the young seedlings as soon as possible in order to avoid root disturbance. Grow them on in the pots until planting out in their final positions. It is usually impossible to transplant this species without fatal damage to the root[200].
Division in spring. With great care since the plant resents root disturbance. It is virtually impossible to divide this species successfully[200].

Suppliers

For more details of plant suppliers please see our Suppliers Page which lists many more places to look.

Web References

[H] Details of Scandanavian and European Common names in Henriette's names database
[E] Ethnobotany Data (common names, uses, countries) from the Ethnobotany Database.
[P] Data. (uses, distribution, wetland) from the USDA'a Plants database.
[HP] Links, Photos, Suppliers from Hortiplex Plant Database

References for Orbexilum pedunculatum var. pedunculatum (a possible synonym).

[B] Data (Latin & Common names, other references) from the BONAP's Synonymized Checklist of the Vascular Flora of the United States, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands.
[P] Data. (uses, distribution, wetland) from the USDA'a Plants database.

References for Orbexilum pedunculatum var. psoralioides (a possible synonym).

[B] Data (Latin & Common names, other references) from the BONAP's Synonymized Checklist of the Vascular Flora of the United States, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands.
[P] Data. (uses, distribution, wetland) from the USDA'a Plants database.

See the PFAF Links Pages for other sources.

Also try Photos and info from the The Plants Database which has 14,000 images.

References

[1] F. Chittendon. RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 Oxford University Press 1951
Comprehensive listing of species and how to grow them. Somewhat outdated, it has been replaces in 1992 by a new dictionary (see [200]).

[43] Fernald. M. L. Gray's Manual of Botany. American Book Co. 1950
A bit dated but good and concise flora of the eastern part of N. America.

[65] Frohne. D. and Pfänder. J. A Colour Atlas of Poisonous Plants. Wolfe 1984 ISBN 0723408394
Brilliant. Goes into technical details but in a very readable way. The best work on the subject that I've come across so far.

[200] Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992 ISBN 0-333-47494-5
Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.

[235] Britton. N. L. Brown. A. An Illustrated Flora of the Northern United States and Canada Dover Publications. New York. 1970 ISBN 0-486-22642-5
Reprint of a 1913 Flora, but still a very useful book.

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Bibliography

Plant information taken from the Plants For A Future - Species Database. Copyright (c) 1997-2003.
WEB search engine by Rich Morris - Home Page- Contact Info
Blagdon Cross, Ashwater, Beaworthy, Devon, EX21 5DF, UK.
Website: www.pfaf.org Phone: 0845 458 4719/_44(0) 1208 872963

This page (UK) http://www.comp.leeds.ac.uk/cgi-bin/pfaf/arr_html?Psoralea+pedunculata
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