Perennial Plant Profiles

Lespedeza capitata, bush clover

We can think of at least 180 great forest garden & perennial crops for cold climate Sweden.  Want to hear about them? Over the course of the next year we will profile 5 a week on the blog. Perennial plants and crops offer a low energy, oil & resource input based foundation for future-proof agricultures. By default if an agriculture is to be called regenerative the bottom line is that it must be soil building, not soil depleting. Relentless deep tillage & poor soil husbandry (wifery?!) contributes to the majority of the 24 billion tons of topsoil lost every year on planet water.  We are going to be focused on holistic polyculture grazing and perennial production at ridgedale over most of the site as this represents the most effective way to restore our degraded landscape, produce high value produce and ensure the future resource base we are managing holistically for in our decision making. 

---

Genus Lespedeza
Species  capitata
Common Name bush clover
Form shrub
Habit clumping
Origin Asia 
Light sun
Moisture mesic 
Edible greens
Dynamic Accumulator Yes

Lespedeza capitata is a species of flowering plant in the Fabaceae, or legume family, and is known by the common name roundhead bushclover, or roundhead lespedeza.  It is native to eastern North America, including eastern Canada and the eastern half of the United States.

This plant is a perennial herb with erect stems growing up to 1.5 m tall. The taproot may grow over two meters deep into the soil, with lateral roots reaching out one meter horizontally. The alternately arranged leaves are each made up of several leaflets. The plant is coated in silvery hairs. Flowers are borne in somewhat rounded clusters atop each stem. The flower is white with a purple spot.

In the wild this plant grows in wooded areas, on prairies, and in disturbed habitat such as roadsides. It is tolerant of drought. It fixes nitrogen.

The plant contains several biologically active compounds. Pharmaceutical preparations are manufactured from them.  An extract of the plant is of disputed utility in chronic kidney disease . Experimentally, it has demonstrated antitumor activity against Walker-256 carcinosarcoma and is also reportedly effective in lowering blood cholesterol levels.  It is also believed to reduce blood levels of nitrogen compounds in persons with high nitrogen levels in their urine.  The root has been used as an antidote to poisoning. The stems have been used in moxibustion in the treatment of neuralgia and rheumatism.

---

OUR FRIENDS AT PFAF HAVE AN AMAZING DATABASE OF SPECIES (UK BASED);

Lespedeza Capitata