SPIDERFLOWER

any of about 200 species of plants constituting the genus Cleome of the caper family (Capparaceae), mostly tropical annual herbs with a pungent odour. The popular cultivated spiderflower (C. hasslerana), with dark pink flowers fading almost to white by noon, is native to sandy thickets and hillsides of the tropical Western Hemisphere. It has five to seven leaflets and a finely spined stem. It is frequently confused with C. spinosa, which has dirty-white flowers. Rocky Mountain bee plant, or stinking clover (C. serrulata), is a summer-flowering annual of North American damp prairies and mountains. About 50 to 150 cm (20 to 60 inches) tall, it has three-parted leaves and clusters of spidery pink flowers with long stamens.