What is "montigena"

Montigena is a genus of flowering plants in the legume family Fabaceae, comprising a single species of dicotyledonous herb native to New Zealand, known as Montigena novae-zelandiae or more commonly the scree pea. The plant is small and woody, arising from thin, branched stems that extend to the surface from a deeply buried root stock. The flowers vary from purple to brown, while fruits appear between January and April.

M. novae-zelandiae was previously classified as Swainsona novae-zelandiae until 1998 when the genus Montigena was created based on the morphological features of the plant.

Montigena is one of the four genera of native legumes in New Zealand; the other three are Carmichaelia, Clianthus, and Sophora.