the scientific name of a genus ofperennial leguminous herbs of the bean family-named, in 1804,after Mr. Kennedy, a gardener at Hammersmith, near London.There are seventeen species, all natives of Australia andTasmania, many of them cultivated for the sake of their showyflowers and berries. Others lie near the ground like a vetch; K. prostrata is called the Coral Pea (q.v.),or Bleeding Heart, or Native Scarlet Runner,or Running Postman. Another species is called Australian Sarsaparilla. See Sarsaparilla.
1885. R. M. Praed, `The Head Station,' p. 294:
«Taking off his felt hat, he twisted round it a withe ofcrimson Kennedia, then put it on again.»