sophoreæ

Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia

1. A tribe of leguminous plants, characterized by a commonly arboreous or high-climbing habit, pinnate leaves of five or numerous leaflets or of a single large leaflet, and flowers with ten free stamens. It contains about 34 genera, of which Sophora is the type, natives chiefly of the tropics, and largely of the southern hemisphere in America and Africa. For other important genera, see Myroxylon and Cladrastis. The latter is the chief genus represented in the United States; another, Camoensia, a lofty-climbing African shrub with handsome and gigantic flowers, is an exception in its trifoliate leaves. See cut under yellow-wood.