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Is Partridge Pea considered native to the Silver Spring, MD area? #913986

Asked August 14, 2025, 10:21 AM EDT

Wikipedia and some other online sources talk about annual Partridge Pea as "native to most of the Eastern United States." Yet I have never heard of it in my work with local native plant greenhouses and nonprofits. I see it where I live, but I understand it's a common component of "Wildflower seed mixes" that could have been purchased and spread around.

Prince George's County Maryland

Expert Response

Native annuals are, overall, much less widely available commercially than native perennials, shrubs, trees, and vines, so it's not uncommon for nurseries focused on stocking native plants to not have much in the way of annual plant offerings. Since they're not yet widely grown, there also may be less propagation information for them (how long of a stratification period they may need, for instance, and planting depth), which can slow the process of nurseries adding them to their inventory (once they can even source seed) since they'd need to experiment with the best way of growing them so they have the fewest losses.

Partridge Pea (Chamaecrista fasciculata, specifically variety fasciculata) is native in Maryland and has been documented in nearly every county. It's possible some specimens found growing wild are actually "escaped" progeny from home gardens that seeded into natural areas, where their genetic origin is unknown (maybe they were sourced from a population outside of Maryland), but the species itself is locally native.

Miri
Thank You!
Lise

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On Aug 14, 2025, at 10:41 AM, Ask Extension wrote:


The Question Asker Replied August 14, 2025, 11:20 AM EDT

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