Tephrosia virginiana, also known as goat-rue, goat's rue,[3] catgut,[3] rabbit pea,[3] Virginia tephrosia,[3] hoary pea,[4] and devil's shoestring[5] is a perennial dicot in family Fabaceae.

[4] Soft white hairs on the leaves and the stem give them a silvery, or hoary, appearance.

[6] The flowers look similar to other flowers in the pea family and are bi-colored, with a pale yellow or cream upper petal (the standard), and pink petals on the bottom (the keel and wings).

The seed pods that form after the flowers bloom are small, approximately 5 centimetres (2 in) long.

[4] The roots are long and stringy, which is probably the source of the common names catgut and devil's shoestrings.