Backyard Nature: This pollinator-friendly plant is still blooming

by Marlene Berlin

Along the Soapstone Trail by the Linnean outfall are blooming plants that have been visited all summer by happily buzzing bees as well as butterflies and birds. It is a native plant called the partridge pea (Chamaecrista fasciculata).

Distinctive features of the partridge pea include delicate yellow flower petals and the leaves made up of rows of leaflets.

The partridge pea is a legume species, native to most of the eastern United States, and according to the U.S. Forest Service, “is considered an excellent species for planting on disturbed areas.” That’s because the plants grow fast and prevent erosion, but do not crowd out other native plant species trying to establish themselves.

The Forest Service’s interest in the plant centers on wildfire recovery. These partridge peas are growing in a part of the Soapstone Valley that had been disturbed by construction vehicles during DC Water’s sewer rehabilitation project.

Another interesting thing about the partridge pea is the way its protects itself from predatory insects. Glands on the part of the leaf called the petiole excrete nectar that attracts ants. And it is those ants that attack the insects that could cause the plant harm.

But friendly polinators such as this monarch butterfly are welcome. (US Fish and Wildlife Service photo)

The partridge pea’s yellow flowers can appear as early as June, and the plant will bloom continuously through October in years of normal rainfall.