| Author | Turczaninow | |
| Distribution | Across the state, with an unexplained gap in the Coastal Plain. Surely will be found in many more counties. Cultivated in the early 1940s in Forsyth and Orange counties; by the mid-late 1950s escaped/established in many counties.
Native to eastern Asia; in N.A. VT to southern Ont. and IA, south to FL and TX. | |
| Abundance | Frequent to common. Some infestations can occupy half an acre. Fairly tolerant of fire and thus a problem in some Longleaf Pine communities. | |
| Habitat | Dry to moist fields, pinelands (native and planted), disturbed woodlands, wildlife food plots (planted heavily here and escaping), roadside thickets. It is/was often planted by wildlife personnel for food and cover for quail and other wildlife species, but sadly, it often escapes into unwanted places. | |
| Phenology | Flowering June-September. | |
| Identification | "Bicolor", as it is often called, is a perennial, bushy-branched shrub 3-7 feet tall, generally glabrous. Leaves are divided into 3 ovate leaflets, glaucescent beneath. Flowers are rosy with a pink keel, clustered near twig tips. It could be confused with L. thunbergii; see Weakley's (2018) key. | |
| Taxonomic Comments | | |
| Other Common Name(s) | Shrub Lespedeza, Shrubby Bush-clover | |
| State Rank | SE | |
| Global Rank | GNR | |
| State Status | | |
| US Status | | |
| USACE-agcp | | |
| USACE-emp | | |
