Hoffmannseggia glauca – Indian Rushpea

Hoffmannseggia glauca - Indian Rushpea, Hog Potato, Pignut, Indian Rush-Pea

Hoffmannseggia glauca - Indian Rushpea, Hog Potato, Pignut, Indian Rush-Pea

Plant Name

Scientific Name: Hoffmannseggia glauca

Synonyms: Hoffmannseggia densiflora, H. falcaria, Hoffmanseggia glauca

Common Names: Indian Rushpea, Hog Potato, Pignut, Indian Rush-Pea

Plant Characteristics

Duration: Perennial

Growth Habit: Subshrub, Herb/Forb

Arizona Native Status: Native

Habitat: Desert, Upland. This weedy wildflower grows in areas of bare, disturbed soil.

Flower Color: Yellow to reddish-yellow

Flowering Season: Spring, Summer

Height: 4 to 12 inches (10 to 30 cm) tall

Description: The flowers are 1 inch (2.5 cm) wide and have 5 spoon-shaped, red-spotted, glandular, yellow petals. The flowers are followed by curved bean pods. The leaves are green, alternate, and bipinnately compound with tiny, oval leaflets. The stems are red and glandular. This plant has tuberous roots and eventually forms large colonies. Pigs will uproot and eat the tubers.

Special Characteristics

Edible – The root tubers are edible if roasted.

Classification

Kingdom: Plantae – Plants
Subkingdom: Tracheobionta – Vascular plants
Superdivision: Spermatophyta – Seed plants
Division: Magnoliophyta – Flowering plants
Class: Magnoliopsida – Dicotyledons
Subclass: Rosidae
Order: Fabales
Family: Fabaceae – Pea family
Genus: Hoffmannseggia Cav. – rushpea
Species: Hoffmannseggia glauca (Ortega) Eifert – Indian rushpea

More About This Plant

Arizona County Distribution Map