Rensoni. Tickclover
Desmodium cinereum

Family: Fabaceae

What it is like

A short lived, fast-growing perennial growing to 2m. Used as nitrogen-rich mulch in alley-cropping systems and in contour hedgerows. It is a good carbon farming plant.

Desmodium cinereum is an evergreen Perennial growing to 2 m (6ft) by 2 m (6ft) at a fast rate. See above for USDA hardiness. It is hardy to UK zone 10. It can fix Nitrogen. Suitable for: light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils. Suitable pH: mildly acid and neutral soils and can grow in very acid soils. It cannot grow in the shade. It prefers moist or wet soil.

Height (m): 2

Where it is found

A tropical plant. Adapted to the wet tropics with more than 1500 mm average annual rainfall and a short, or no dry season. Lowland species found at altitudes between 0-1000 m .

Native to: Western Mexico and Central America from Salvador to Nicaragua. Also found in south and southeast Asia and the Philippines.

Conservation Status: This taxon has not yet been assessed

Countries/locations it is found in

Asia, Indonesia (South and southeast Asia and the Philippines), Mexico, South America (Western Mexico and Central America from Salvador to Nicaragua).

How it is used

Food

Rating: 0

Medicine

Rating: 0

Other

Rating: 4

Contour hedgerows and alley cropping (used as nitrogen-rich mulch in alley-cropping systems) . Foliage for stock feed. Leaf meal of D. cinereum gave similar benefits to Leucaena leucocephala leaf meal when fed as a protein supplement to poultryand pigs, and also gave incremental improvements in LWG of sheep when fed as hay. Nutrient analysis results for D. cinereum leaf were similar to those for Medicago sativa. Regular cutting stimulates multiple stems and increases yields of leaf. Nitrogen-rich mulch. Carbon Farming Solutions - Agroforestry Services: nitrogen, contour hedgerow, understory legume (Agroforestry is a land use management system in which trees or shrubs are grown around or among crops or pastureland). Fodder: bank.

Fodder: Food given to the animals (including plants cut and carried to them) rather than forage for themselves.

Hedge: Plants that can be grown as hedges.

Mulch: Used for covering the ground to conserve the nutrients in the soil.

Soil conditioner: Plants grown to improve the structure of the soil. See also Green manures.

Straw: For drinking with.

Agroforestry Services: Contour hedgerow: Alley cropping systems on the contour of slopes.

Agroforestry Services: Nitrogen: Plants that contribute to nitrogen fixation include the legume family – Fabaceae.

Agroforestry Services: Understory legume: Legume vegetation, especially the trees and shrubs growing between the forest canopy and the forest floor.

Fodder: Bank: Fodder banks are plantings of high-quality fodder species. Their goal is to maintain healthy productive animals. They can be utilized all year, but are designed to bridge the forage scarcity of annual dry seasons. Fodder bank plants are usually trees or shrubs, and often legumes. The relatively deep roots of these woody perennials allow them to reach soil nutrients and moisture not available to grasses and herbaceous plants.

Management: Fodder: Non-destructive management systems maintaining the soil organic carbon.

Minor Global Crop: These crops are already grown or traded around the world, but on a smaller scale than the global perennial staple and industrial crops, The annual value of a minor global crop is under $1 billion US. Examples include shea, carob, Brazil nuts and fibers such as ramie and sisal.

Agroforestry Services: Contour hedgerow: Alley cropping systems on the contour of slopes.

Agroforestry Services: Nitrogen: Plants that contribute to nitrogen fixation include the legume family – Fabaceae.

Agroforestry Services: Understory legume: Legume vegetation, especially the trees and shrubs growing between the forest canopy and the forest floor.

Fodder: Bank: Fodder banks are plantings of high-quality fodder species. Their goal is to maintain healthy productive animals. They can be utilized all year, but are designed to bridge the forage scarcity of annual dry seasons. Fodder bank plants are usually trees or shrubs, and often legumes. The relatively deep roots of these woody perennials allow them to reach soil nutrients and moisture not available to grasses and herbaceous plants.

Management: Fodder: Non-destructive management systems maintaining the soil organic carbon.

Minor Global Crop: These crops are already grown or traded around the world, but on a smaller scale than the global perennial staple and industrial crops, The annual value of a minor global crop is under $1 billion US. Examples include shea, carob, Brazil nuts and fibers such as ramie and sisal.

Carbon Farming: Plants that can be a critical part of the solution to climate problems. The Carbon Farming Solution - Eric Toensmeier.

Food Forest: Plants for Edible Forest Gardens and Food Forests.

Hedge: Hedge

Nitrogen Fixer: Plants that fix nitrogen in the soil

How it is grown

Climate: tropical highlands. Humidity: humid. Adapted to the wet tropics with more than 1500 mm average annual rainfall and a short, or no dry season. Lowland species found at altitudes between 0-1000m. Requires a mean annual temperature in excess of 20°C and has no frost tolerance. Found on moderately fertile, neutral or slightly acid soils. Becomes chlorotic in alkaline soil . Fast growing but short lived. Regular cutting stimulates multiple stems and increases yields of leaf. If seed production is required, defoliation must be timed to avoid destroying the developing seed crop. Reported to be a high quality feed supplement for ruminants in southeast Asia . Carbon Farming Solutions - Cultivation: minor global crop. Management: fodder (Describes the non-destructive management systems that are used in cultivation).

Propagating it: Seed germinates quickly (3-4 days) without scarification.

Best place to grow:

Habit: Perennial

Hardiness: 9-11

Growth: Fast

Soil: Light (sandy), medium, heavy (clay)

Shade: No shade

Moisture: Moist, wet

Things to keep in mind

Potential weed risk in the Pacific islands.

Its other names

Local names

Rensonii or Rensoni (Southeast Asia).

Synonyms

Desmodium luteocanescens M.E.Jones. Hedysarum cinereum Kunth. Hedysarum sericeum Mill. Meibomia cinerea (Kunth) Standl.