

(Lespedeza cuneata)
Aggressive, perennial, warm-season, tap rooted legume
Shrub habit, copiously branched plant with ascending stems
Distinguished from other lespedeza by:
*Leaf shape
*Flower color
*Growth form
Habitat:
*Adapted to a wide range of conditions
*Roadsides
*Ditches
*Railroad tracks
*Abandoned fields
*Pasture
*Rangeland
Flowers:
*Chasmogamous or cleistagamous
*July through October
*White to whitish-pink with darker blotches
Seeds:
*Do not germinate well unless scarified
*Temperature range for germination: 68-86 degrees
*Optimum seedling growth occurs at 79 degrees (day)/71 degrees (night), plus 13-15 hour
photoperiod
Growth and reproduction:
*Crown buds produce new shoots each year
*New shoots are succulent until they reach 12"-14" height
*Individual plants can produce up to 30 stems in four years
*Stands can survive for 20 years
*Reproduction from crown buds and seeds
Management:
*Frequent mowing encourages herbaceous stem growth to increase herbicide absorption
*Mowing at flower bud stage reduces stand vigor and spread
*Burning increases germination and stem growth; burn in May, spray in June when new growth
is 6-8"
*Herbicides: glyphosate, mesulfuron, triclopyr, and triclopyr + fluroxypyr
*Triclopyr in June, metsulfuron in September
Threats:
*Highly competitive for light, nutrients and water
*Tannins in mature stems make them unpalatable
*Highly allelopathic, forms dense monocultures