Plants: Grain Legumes (Pulses)
Adzuki Bean Vigna angularis (Willd.) Ohwi & Ohashi
Adzuki-bean has a 2,000-year history of cultivation in eastern Asia. The chief countries of adzuki-bean production are China, Japan, Taiwan, and South Korea. Its origin from a wild species is unknown but its center of origin has been proposed as within eastern Asia, quite possibly in China....
Black Gram Bean Vigna mungo (syn. Phaseolus mungo)
This very important bean in the diet of vegetarian Indians was originally found growing in India. It is now widely cultivated in the tropics.
Chickpea Cicer arietinum
Chickpea’s origin is possibly western Asian, specifically southeast Turkey.
Common Pole Bean Phaseolus vulgaris (pole type)
Pole Beans are common beans, like the bush bean but grow as a climbing vine. The two originated in the Andes region with probable introgressions from Central America. Radio carbon dating identifies the species as being 7,000 years old.
Cowpea Vigna unguiculata subsp. unguiculata
Cowpea is a grain legume that originates in Africa. Attributes such as vine shape (climbing, prostrate, or semi-erect), seed color (shades of white, pink, brown, and black) and seed maturation time (60 to 240 days) vary with variety. Pods appear in V-shaped pairs
Edible Australian Acacias Acacia colei, A. elecantha, A. torulosa, A. tumida
Most Edible Acacia seed species are from northern semi-arid regions of Australia and range from medium-sized trees to large, multi-stemmed bushes. Several Edible Acacia species have been successfully introduced into African semi-arid regions like Niger and Senegal.
Acacia colei is a drought...
Faba Bean Vicia faba L. (syn. Faba vulgaris)
Faba-Bean is known only as a cultivated species. Its presumed origin is somewhere in the Middle East where it has been cultivated for thousands of years. Faba-Bean is a cool season grain legume, now widely distributed in temperate environments around the globe. Its geographic spread began early,...
Grain Soybean Glycine max
Grain Soybean cultivation probably originated in northeastern China, a region where wild soybeans exist. This crop produces more protein and oil per unit of land than most other known crops.
Hopi Red Lima Phaseolus lunatus
The Hopi Red Lima is believed to have originated in Mexico and south-western areas of the United States. ECHO seeds originally came from dry-land regions of Kenya.
Horse Gram Macrotyloma uniflorum
This legume plant is native to tropical Africa and Southeast Asia. It is now grown in the drier areas of Australia and Asia.