Sunday Sundries: Papilionaceous Peas

The ghost town of Rocky Springs, Mississippi, once a prosperous community along the Natchez Trace, now consists of only a church building and few old, rusty safes.

Growing against a decidedly unoriginal-looking chain link fence adjacent to the church building, amongst equally unoriginal double orange daylilies, was a slightly nibbled-on spurred butterfly pea (Centrosema virginianum). 

Members of the legume family Fabaceae frequently have this distinct pea flower shape, resembling the shape of a butterfly (or papillon)-- technically denoted "papilionaceous" (which I think would make a good obscure adjective meaning "flighty and flamboyant").

Photo by Stefan.lefnaer

Here is the everlasting pea (Lathyrus latifolius) for even more papilionaceousness. Although it's not native to the US, its rather long-lasting flower clusters do hold up well when cut... so perhaps when you are viciously eradicating it to preserve native species, you can show a little bit of humanity by putting a few blooms in a vase.