美麗紫色豆科 beautiful purple pea family

水黃皮 pongamia pinnata 、亮葉雞血藤 glittering-leaved millettia 、假地豆 desmodium heterocarpum = these three look alike yet are different. 三位紫色仙子，活于同一泥土上卻是不同個體。

水黃皮 pongamia pinnata

• 落葉喬木deciduous tree
• 海岸樹種，抗風、耐鹽 prefers coastal and riverine habitats
• 葉面光亮潔淨，有柄長橢圓形或卵形。羽狀複葉。葉茂盛，重壓枝條，下垂生長shinny leaves. leaves with handles, oblong or oval in shape; can come in abundance and cast a burden to the plant, thus heads mostly down.
• 總狀花序，花腋生。淡紫色蝶形。春秋開花raceme inflorescence, purple flowers
• 莢果。扁平木質，略呈刀狀。成熟後不會裂開，果皮會保護種子隨水漂流，散播種子 the pod slightly resembles a knife and does not crack when it matures. instead it helps to spread the seeds by keeping them inside and float itself in water
• 見於濕地公園 photo taken at wetland park

millettia pinnata – order: fabales 豆目 | family: papilionaceae蝶形花科 | tribe: millettieae | genus: millettia崖豆藤屬 | species: 水黃皮種m. pinnata

亮葉雞血藤 glittering-leaved millettia

• 攀援灌木 climber scrub
• 莖根折斷有紅色濃汁流出，像雞血，故得名。red thick fluid comes out from broken stem, therefore its chinese common name is chicken blood millettia
• 橢圓形葉互生，羽狀複葉 leaf arrangement: pinnate
• 紫色萼鐘狀，瓣外面近白色。圓錐花序頂生 pea-shaped flowers with petals pale in colour on the outside. inflorescence in cone
• 莢果扁平，有褐色柔毛。the pod has soft brown hair
• 見於北潭涌 photo taken at pak tam chung

millettia nitida benth. – order: fabales 豆目 | family: fabaceae | subfamily: faboideae/ papilionaceae 蝶形花亞科 | tribe: millettieae | genus: millettia崖豆藤屬 | species: m. nitida fabales

假地豆 desmodium heterocarpum

• 小灌木 shrub
• 生於山谷水旁灌叢或林中 prefers waterside in woods and forest
• 小葉橢圓形至寬倒卵形
• 圓錐花序，花腋生。花序軸有淡黃色長柔毛。紫色花萼寬鐘狀。cone-shaped inflorescence. the axis of the inflorescene has pale yellow soft hair. purple colour pea-shaped flowers
• 莢果有4-9莢節，有小鉤狀毛 pods have four to nine segments and hooky hair
• 產于雲南、四川、貴州、廣西、廣東、福建、臺灣、江西，南亞南亞 native to guangdong

desmodium heterocarpum – order: fabales | family: fabaceae豆科 | subfamily: faboideae | tribe: desmodieae | subtribe: desmodiinae | genus: desmodium 山螞蝗屬