These shrubby plants or trailing vines belong to the "typical" legumes (Faboideae), with the peas and beans, though they are part of another tribe, the Desmodieae. Therein, they are treated as type genus of the smaller subtribeLespedezinae, which unites the present genus and its presumed closest relatives, Campylotropis and Kummerowia.
According to American botanist Asa Gray (1810–1888), the Lespedeza owes its name to governor of East FloridaVicente Manuel de Céspedes (1784–1790; who, through a letter, allowed botanist André Michaux to explore East Florida in search of new species of plants, where Michaux found Lespedeza[3]), but when Céspedes wrote the letter, at the beginning of it, the name of Céspedes was changed to "Zespedez". So, when Michaux's book Flora Boreali-Americana of 1802 was printed, the name "Céspedes" to refer to the plant was written as "Lespedez", the word from which the current name of the plant was derived.[4][3]
Despeleza is a synonym of Lespedeza, and this name is derived from a taxonomic anagram.[5]
Some species are grown as garden or ornamental plants, and are used as a forage crops, notably in the southern United States, and as a means of soil enrichment and for prevention of erosion. In some areas, certain species are invasive. Lespedeza, like other legumes, have root nodules that harbor bacteria capable of nitrogen fixation from the air into a soil-bound form that can be taken up by other plants. Growers can take advantage of this process by putting the plants in their fields to release nitrogen, so they can use less fertilizer.
Lespedeza thunbergii subsp. elliptica (Benth. ex Maxim.) H.Ohashi (syn. L. elliptica Benth. ex Maxim.)
Lespedeza thunbergii subsp. formosa (Vogel) H.Ohashi (syn. L. albifloraRicker, L. hayataeHatus., L. inabensisNakai, L. intermedia(Maxim. ex Matsum.) Nakai, L. pubescens Hayata, L. shiroyamensisHatus., and L. wilfordiiRicker)
Lespedeza thunbergii subsp. patens(Nakai) H.Ohashi (syn. L. patens Nakai)
Lespedeza thunbergii subsp. satsumensis(Nakai) H.Ohashi (syn. L. satsumensisNakai)
Lespedeza thunbergii subsp. thunbergii (syn. L. chekiangensisRicker, L. grandifloraH.Koidz., L. grandisKoidz., L. kiusianaNakai, L. liukiuensisHatus., L. nipponicaNakai, L. racemosaDippel, L. sieboldiiMiq., L. tetralobaNakai, L. viatorumChamp. ex Benth.)
Lespedeza tomentosa (Thunb.) Siebold ex Maxim. (syn. L. hirta Miq.) – woolly lespedeza[7]
Some species formerly in this genus that are now placed elsewhere, typically in the Lespedezinae, for example, in genus Campylotropis. These include:[8]
Burkhardt, Lotte (2018-06-06). Verzeichnis eponymischer Pflanzennamen - Erweiterte Edition. Index of Eponymic Plant Names - Extended Edition. Index de Noms éponymiques des Plantes - Édition augmentée (in German). Botanic Garden and Botanical Museum Berlin, Freie Universität Berlin. p.A13. doi:10.3372/epolist2018. ISBN978-3-946292-26-5.
International Legume Database & Information Service (ILDIS) (2005): Genus Lespedeza. Version 10.01, November 2005. Retrieved 2011-FEB-18.
Morimoto, Hiroshi & Matsumoto, Norichika (1966). Über Alkaloide, VI. Inhaltsstoffe Lespedeza bicolor var. japonica, II. ["Alkaloid contents of L. bicolor var. japonica II."] J. Liebigs Ann. Chem.682(1): 212–218 [in German]. doi:10.1002/jlac.19666920122
Morimoto, Hiroshi & Oshio, Haruji (1965). Über Alkaloide, V. Inhaltsstoffe von Lespedeza bicolor var. japonica, I. Über Lespedamin, ein neues Alkaloid. ["Alkaloid contents of L. bicolor var. japonica I. On Lespedamin, a novel alkaloid."] J. Liebigs Ann. Chem.682(1): 212–218 [in German]. doi:10.1002/jlac.19656820121
