Loco Weeds are closely related to the ground plum, two of them being found in Texas and causing much loss to stockmen. They cause a slow poisoning of horses, sheep, and cattle but are particularly injurious to horses. The poisoning is chiefly due to the barium salts in the plant and is characterized by symptoms of staggering, some paralysis, and emaciation. The woolly loco weed (Astragalus mollissimus) has woolly leaves with 19-27 oval leaflets about half an inch long and spikes of violet-purple flowers. The stemless loco weed (Oxytropis lamberti) has basal leaves with 9-19 nearly linear leaflets about an inch long. Both are common on the plains, but the latter ranges into Southern Canada.
TEXAS CLIMBING VETCH NUTTALL’S MILK VETCH
Nuttall’s Milk Vetch. Turkey Pea (Hamosa nuttalliana) is a low plant with few-flowered clusters of small flowers. Although it is inconspicuous, it is so common in yards and fields from Arkansas to Arizona that many people are familiar with it. It blooms in March in the southern part and May and June in the northern part of its range. The narrow pods are slightly curved and nearly an inch long. There are several hamosas with similar pods which are common in the state.
Texas Climbing Vetch (Vicia texana) has prostrate branches, 1-2 ft. long, and divided leaves terminating in branched tendrils by which the branches climb over the low plants with which they come in contact. Clusters of the dainty, pale bluish-purple flowers appear in late March and April, the plants forming masses of bloom along roadsides in the sandy regions of the state from Central Texas to Arkansas and Mississippi.
Many of the climbing vetches are planted for cover crops, and one is a garden bean. Many of the garden beans belong to the Phaseolus group, among these being the tepary bean (Phaseolus acutifolius latifolius), a native bean from West Texas to Arizona.
CORAL-BEAN
Coral-Bean (Erythrina herbacea) grows in woods along the coast from Texas to North Carolina. It has erect, herbaceous stems growing from a woody root. The flowers appear before the leaves in spike-like clusters at the ends of the branches. “Erythrina” is from the Greek, meaning “red” and refers to the color of the flowers, which are over an inch long and have the upper petal wrapped around the other petals. The leaves are 6-8 in. long and slender-stalked; they are divided into 3 broad leaflets.
The coral-bean belongs to a group of highly ornamental tropical plants. It does well in cultivation in Southern and Central Texas but is not suitable for a cut-flower, as the flowers soon drop off. The red beans are often used for necklaces. When the pods begin to open, the clusters may be gathered for winter decorations. The coral-tree (Erythrina cristagalli) from Brazil is common in cultivation and has broader and showier flowers than the coral-bean.