Legumes are a huge family dicotyledonous plants(trees, lianas, shrubs, dwarf shrubs and grasses) belonging to the order Leguminous, class Dicotyledonous, department Flowering, kingdom Plants, Eukaryote domain.
Some plants from this family are used by humans as food, some as ornamental, and some for land restoration.
What is a "bob"?
First of all, it is a fruit that has an elongated shape and consists of two thin valves, between which the seeds are located. The size of a legume fruit can fit in the palm of your hand, or it can reach enormous sizes.
Peas
Entada from the subfamily Mimosa
The legume family includes 24505 plant species and is divided into three subfamilies: Caesalpinia, Moth and Mimosa.
Caesalpinioideae
1 Caesalpinioideae, which are mainly trees growing in the tropics, with the exception of the genus Cassia, which includes shrubs and grasses, is very important for medicine. They are divided into four tribes: Caesalpinia, Cassia, Bagryanikov, Detariev.
a) Caesalpinieae
Caesalpínia - named after the Italian doctor Andrea Cesalpino in 1703. It grows only in warm regions. This is an ornamental plant up to 6 meters high.
Caesalpinia-pulcherrima
Caesalpinia pulcherrima
Caesalpinia bonducella - most often it is a vine, reaching a height of 15 meters. It mainly grows in Asia, Africa, South America. Used in folk medicine, since an anti-fever remedy is obtained from its seeds.
Colvillea
Parkinsonia
Peltophorum
Caesalpinia echinata grows only in eastern Brazil. Due to cutting down in wildlife this type of tree is very rare. There are sharp growths on its trunk. Therefore, she was called the hedgehog.
It grows in height up to 30 meters. Previously, the trunk of this tree was used to obtain dyes. Refers to valuable tree species.
b) Cassieae - Cassian
c) Crimson (Cercideae)
The scarlet grows in China.
Bauhinia (Bauhinia) is distributed all over the world.
d) Detarieae
Brownea
Butterflies (Faboideae)
2 Moths (Faboideae), which grow mainly in the temperate zone in the form of herbaceous plants, many of which we eat, such as peas, beans, soybeans, peanuts. In the tropics, these are woody plants in the form of vines.
Wisteria (Wistéria) - climbing tree-like subtropical plants - deciduous vines. They grow in Japan and China, and are also used as ornamental plants around the world.
Robinieae robinia
Mimosa (Mimosoideae)
3 Mimosa (Mimosoideae), numbering up to 1,500 thousand species and growing in the subtropical and tropical zones. These are mainly trees and shrubs with medicinal value, the wood of which is very valuable to humans.
a) Acacieae - Acacia
They mainly grow in Mexico, Africa, Asia, Australia.
Acacia dealbata silver
Acacia pycnantha golden acacia is the floral emblem of Australia
Acacia linifolia
Acacia_brachystachya
Sickle-bladed acacia (Acacia drepanolobium) grows in Africa. This is the only acacia species on which ants live. They settle in the swollen cavities of the thorns. Air, getting into them, emits a whistle and thereby scares away animals.
b) Ingae (Ingeae)
Albizia
Zygia
Archidendron
Calliandra
c) Mimoseae
Dichrostachys
Parkia
Pentaclethra
Elephantorrhiza
Mimosa pudica
Plants of the legume family
The legume family plays an important role in human life. Some types serve decorative decoration and give us a valuable species of wood, others are indispensable in medicine, and still others are very tasty and nutritious food.
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legumes wild red book
Legumes are very widespread - from the Arctic to the Antarctic islands. In terms of the breadth of distribution, representatives of the legume subfamily are generally second only to cereals. In most countries with tropical, warm temperate and boreal climates, legumes constitute a significant part of the local flora. Only in cold climates is their share of participation relatively small.
The ability to adapt to the most diverse natural conditions striking in legumes. They easily penetrate into many plant communities and are often their edificators. It is believed that in the herbage of the forest and forest-steppe zones, legumes make up 10-20% of the total mass. Many legumes have perfectly adapted to moisture deficits in heavy and infertile clay soils or on moving sands. In the humid tropics and subtropics, legumes are often found in forests as the main species.
Speaking about the huge prevalence of legumes, one should, however, indicate those communities and habitats where representatives of this family never enter. Thus, legumes are almost absent in freshwater communities.
Legumes - trees (often very large, sometimes up to 80 m in height), shrubs, shrubs, dwarf shrubs and grasses (the latter are mainly in the legume subfamily).
Curly forms, both herbaceous and woody, are quite common. On the roots of most legumes (about 70% of species), some of the mimosa (10-15%), some cesalpinia have nodules. They are very of various shapes and arise as growths of the parenchymal tissue of the root.
Nine types of legumes are listed in the Red Book of the Lipetsk Region. These include: ASTRAGAL WHITE-STABLE Astragalus albicaulis DC. ; ASTRAGAL WOOL Astragalus dasyanthus Pall. ; Astragalus changeable (Astragalus varius S. G. Gmel.); Shrub caragana (Caragana frutex); Austrian broom (Cytisus austriacus L); Black rank Lathyrus niger; KASHUBSKY PEAS Kashubs of boorchaga Vicia cassubica L.; Clover Litvinov.
Legume leaves are varied, but always complex. Stipules are always present, but often fall off early, or sometimes grow strongly (peas). Leaves and individual leaves are capable of performing different kinds circular motions or fold over at night.
The flowers are bisexual, often quite large and bright. They are zygomorphic in moth and Caesalpiniaceae, and actinomorphic in mimosa. The perianth is always double. The calyx consists of 5, less often of 4 accrete sepals, correct or incorrect. Petals 5 (the entire subfamily of moths, some of the cesalpinia and mimosa) or 4 (the rest of the cesalpinia and mimosa). The corolla of moths has a characteristic structure. The upper, outer in its position in the bud and usually the largest petal is called the flag (sail). It helps to attract insect pollinators. (FIG 1)
1 - Flag (sail)
2 - Wings (paddles)
3 - Boat
The side lobes are called wings (oars) and are used by insects as a landing site. The petals innermost in position in the bud usually grow together along the lower edge, forming a boat (keel). The boat, like a protective sheath, protects the stamens and pistil and prevents small insects from visiting the flowers, which eat pollen or nectar, but are not effective pollinators. The corolla of Caesalpiniaceae is also more or less irregular, but the upper petal, homologous to the flag, occupies an internal position in the bud. In mimosa, all petals are the same - free or accrete (Fig. 2).
Androeum in all legumes consists of 10 stamens and can be mono- and dvurasny. To determine the genera within the family under consideration, the structure of the androecium is important. In some genera, the androecium is multiple, when all 10 stamens are free (genera: sophora, thermopsis). In others, it is one-brother, when all 10 stamens grow together, staminal filaments between themselves, forming a so-called staminate tube inside which a pistil is located (genera lupines, etc.). Finally, most genera of the family have a double-breasted androecium: 9 stamens grow together with filaments in a tube, and one stamen is free (genera: peas, alfalfa, vetch, rank). The shape of the staminate tube is also varied. In some cases, it is cut straight and the free ends of the filaments of the same length (rank), in other cases, it is cut obliquely. In mimosa stamens, the stamens are often cleaved, and then the androecium seems to be polymeric. Moths very often have hypanthium (a specific detail of a flower resulting from the fusion of the bases of sepals, petals, and stamens with the tissues of the receptacle). Gynoecium is almost always monocarpous, with an upper unilocular, rarely two-celled ovary.
Flowers are collected in simple inflorescences - brush, umbrella, head.
Flower formula: CH5L5P1T10
Flower diagrams (Figure 2)
Мimisoideae Caesalpinioideae Faboideae
Fruit - monocarp: one-, two- or polyspermous pod, opening, non-opening or segmented. May be pubescent or not. The seeds are relatively large, with or without endosperm, the embryo with well-developed cotyledons, straight (in Caesalpiniaceae and Mimosa) or bent (in Butterflies).
Pollination is cross, in most moths it is carried out large insects- bumblebees and bees who are attracted by abundant supplies of nectar or pollen. There are self-pollinating species such as peas. The fruits are spread by their own gravity, wind, water. The seeds of the bursting beans are scattered by the force of the unwinding flaps.
In seeds, legumes contain protein as a reserve substance, as well as starch and fatty oil, which determines their great nutritional and feed value. Alkaloids, triterpene glycosides, anthracene derivatives, etc. have been found in a significant number of species. food products widely used seeds of soybeans (Glycine max), beans (Phaseolus vulgaris), peas (Pisum sativum), lentils (Lens culinaris), peanuts, or peanuts (arachis hypogaea), etc. The best forage grasses are alfalfa (Medicato sativa) , crescent or yellow alfalfa (M / falcata), and different types clovers. At the same time, legumes significantly improve soil fertility. Every year, legume species living in symbiosis with bacteria return at least 100-140 kg / ha of nitrogen to the soil.
Examples of legumes:
1 - typical wiki fruit
2 - the bursting penny bean
3 - spirally rolled alfalfa bean
4 - one-seeded sainfoin bean
5 - winged one-two-seeded bean of red sandalwood.
Many legumes are valuable medicinal plants, for example, licorice glabra and Ural (Clusyrrhiza glabra and C. uralensis), the roots and rhizomes of which contain triterpene saponins and flavonoids. Cassia acutifolia and C. angustifolia give the so-called Alexandrian leaf, a classic laxative. Many acacias and astragalus secrete gums (polysaccharides) used in engineering and medicine. Sophora Japanese (Styphnolobium japonicum) - industrial source obtaining a flavonoid rutin with P-vitamin activity. Many legumes are highly decorative and are cultivated both in the tropics and in temperate countries.
The legume family has two forms: herbaceous and woody. The forms, in turn, are divided into three subfamilies according to the structure of the flower: mimosa, cesalpinia and leguminous.
Caesalpinia and mimosa plants - live only in warm climates, and legumes grow all over the globe. These include the well-known forage and vegetable crops: peas, beans, beans, soybeans, chickpeas, peanuts, alfalfa and clover.
All representatives of legumes have a distinctive structure of the fruit - a pod. When ripe, the pod opens at one or two seams. Beans are very diverse in shape and size.
The leaves of most legumes are complex: pinnate or pinnate, arranged in pairs, from one to twenty pairs.
A feature of the roots of legumes is the presence of tubers, which are colonies of nitrogen-fixing bacteria that penetrate from the ground into the roots and cause the growth of the root system.
Nutritional value of legumes
The role of legumes in human life is very important. Since ancient times, food representatives of legumes have been an integral part of the diet of all peoples.
The nutritional value of leguminous plants is due to their varied composition: proteins, large quantities, some have vegetable oil in the fruits.
Peas contain up to 28% protein, lentils - 32%, soybeans up to 40% of the total mass. These indicators make legumes a cheap substitute for meat products. Vegetable oil is industrially obtained from soybeans and peanuts.
Legumes are a source of B vitamins: B1, B2, B6, which have a positive effect on the work of the heart. Fiber in the composition of foods has a beneficial effect on the intestines and satiates the body.
A very important advantage of legumes is that they do not accumulate toxic substances in themselves.
The role of legumes
Forage, medicinal, technical, melliferous, ornamental crops also play a very important role in the life of mankind. Among forage crops, in terms of area occupied, clover is in first place, followed by various types of alfalfa and camel thorn.
Medicinal plants are also valuable: cassia (used as a laxative), licorice root (a raw material for the medical industry).
Some tropical species provide valuable red and dark brown woods. Many types of legumes secrete gum, which is used in the paint and varnish and textile industries.
Legumes are a special type of crops that differ from other grains in their higher protein content. One of the most famous legumes is peas, but this crop is much more diverse.
Legumes
Legumes are a valuable source of vegetable protein that is widely used for food by both humans and animals. They belong to the dicotyledonous family and are distributed in various parts of the world, since they can grow in a variety of climates, ranging from arid regions to mountainous terrain.Pulses are also called pulses due to the special shape of their fruit, which is usually round or oval, reminiscent of a grain. In this case, however, legumes are usually larger than those of cereals: as a rule, they are at least 3 centimeters and can reach 1.5 meters. Most legumes have their seeds wrapped in a special shell called a pod.
The nutritional value of legumes lies in the fact that, at a fairly low cost, they contain a significant amount of protein: on average, 100 grams of legumes account for 22 to 25 grams of protein. This figure is significantly higher than, for example, in cereals, 100 grams of which contain 8-13 grams of protein. In addition, 60-70% of the weight of a legume is starch, and another 1-3% is fat.
Types of legumes
Legumes are one of the most diverse plant species: their number is about 18 thousand species, and a significant part of them are edible. At the same time, one of the most common plants belonging to this culture is soy: it is used both independently and as a component in the production of complex products in the dairy, meat and confectionery industries. At the same time, among other representatives of its kind, soy is the product with the highest protein content: 100 grams of this crop contains about 35 grams of this valuable substance.In Russia, the most famous legumes are peas, beans and beans. It is customary to harvest them by drying and then use them in the preparation of soups and main courses. Also beans and beans are used for the production of canned vegetables. In addition, some types of these crops are also used as fodder plants, and in this case, not only the fruits, but also the rest of the green parts of the plants, including the stem and leaves, go to feed the livestock.
However, the variety of legumes is not limited to this list. So, in recent years, products of this group, previously poorly known on the market, for example, chickpeas, rank and lentils, began to appear in Russian stores. In addition, peanuts, which are considered to be nuts, also belong to this category.
Legumes, or Butterflies (Latin Fabaceae = Leguminosae = Papilonaceae)- a family of dicotyledonous plants, many of which have a high nutritional value, and some are grown as ornamental plants. Herbaceous representatives of this family are able to bind and retain atmospheric nitrogen in the soil. The family includes about 24 and a half thousand species of annual and perennial plants, united in more than 900 genera. The family is represented by three subfamilies - Tsezalpiniev, Mimozov and Bobov proper, or Motylkov. Representatives of subfamilies differ primarily in the structure of the flower.
Humanity has been eating some legumes since the Stone Age, and in different countries the same legume product was treated differently. For example, in Greece peas were the food of the poor, and in France they were included in the king's exquisite menu, in ancient Egypt lentil bread was an everyday dish, and in ancient Rome this plant was considered medicinal.
Legumes family - description
In terms of the breadth of their distribution, legumes are second only to cereals. In countries with temperate, boreal, subtropical and tropical climates, legumes make up a significant part of the flora. One of the indisputable advantages of legumes is the ability to adapt to a wide variety of natural conditions.
The leaves of legumes are alternate, usually complex - trifoliate, pinnate or palmate, with stipules, but plants with simple leaves are also found. Bisexual flowers are collected in axillary or terminal capitate, racemose, semi-umbellate or paniculate inflorescences. The upper large petal of leguminous plants is called a sail, the side petals are called oars, and the fused or stuck together lower petals are called a boat. The fruit of legumes is usually a dry, most often polyspermous pod, or pod, with two valves that open when ripe. Sometimes a ripe bean breaks down into single-seeded parts, but there are plants with a single-seeded bean, which, even when ripe, does not open up by itself. Legume seeds usually have large cotyledons without endosperm.
Fruit legumes
Peas
- a genus of herbaceous plants of the legume family. The pea is one of the oldest members of the family, introduced to culture about 8,000 years ago in the Fertile Crescent, which consisted of Mesopotamia, the Levant, prehistoric Syria and Palestine. From there the peas spread west to Europe and east to India. Peas were cultivated both in Ancient Greece and in Ancient Rome - a mention of it was found in the works of Theophrastus, Columella and Pliny. In the Middle Ages in Europe, peas became one of the main food resources of the poor, as they could be stored dry for a long time. Peas were cooked with lard. And the first recipe for a green pea dish was found in the book by Guillaume Tyrelle, written in the 13th century. The use of green peas in food came into fashion during the time of Louis XIV, and the peak of the popularity of this culture came in France in the 19th century. In 1906, a work was published in which more than two hundred varieties of peas were described, and in 1926 the Bonduelle society was formed, which organized the production of frozen green peas, which still holds the leading position in the production of canned and frozen vegetables.
Peas appeared in America thanks to H. Columbus, who brought its seeds to Santo Domingo. It is known that American President Jefferson, famous for his love of agronomy, collected a collection of crop samples that served as the basis for breeding early ripening pea varieties. In 1920, the American inventor Clarence Birdsye proposed a method for freezing green peas, which was quickly mastered by Europeans, and in the state of Minnesota they erected a monument to peas - a giant green statue.
Sowing peas (lat.Pisum sativum)- a typical species of peas, a climbing annual, widely cultivated as a fodder and food plant. The feathery leaves of the pea end in branched tendrils with which the plant clings to the support. Peas have large stipules. The moth-like flowers of peas are colored white, purple or pink. The seeds are lightly compressed globular peas enclosed in a dense pod.
Sowing pea varieties are divided into three groups:
- shell peas, spherical peas of which have a smooth surface. Second and first courses are prepared from dry grains of shelling varieties. They contain a lot of starch and are used both in the food industry and in the manufacture of bioplastics;
- cereal pea is so called because its peas, when ripe, shrivel and look like a miniature brain. Brain seeds have a sweet taste and are often mistaken for the fruit of sugar peas. Brain varieties are used mainly for blanks - usually light varieties are canned, and dark ones are frozen. For cooking, cereal peas are not suitable, since they do not boil;
- sugar peas - these varieties do not have a parchment film in the pods. When dried, the seeds of sugar varieties wrinkle greatly due to their high moisture content.
Pea seeds are a source of carbohydrates and vegetable protein, but their main nutritional value lies in a high concentration of mineral salts and trace elements - one pea includes almost the entire periodic table. In addition, the seeds contain fatty acids, natural sugars, dietary fiber and starch. The seeds of the crop contain B vitamins, as well as vitamins A, H, K, E, PP.
Despite the cold resistance of the culture, it is grown only in sunny areas. Soils for peas need moist, but not wet, neutral reaction and light - preferably loamy or sandy loam. Peas grow best after pumpkin or nightshade crops. In autumn, it is advisable to fertilize the area for peas with humus or compost at the rate of half a bucket per m² or apply mineral fertilizers in the amount of 30-40 g of superphosphate and 20-30 g of potassium chloride per m², and in the spring, just before planting, you need to fertilize the soil with ammonium nitrate at the rate of 20 -30 g per unit area.
The best shelling pea varieties are considered to be early-maturing Hezbana, Tires, Alpha, Corvin, Zamira, Misty, early-maturing Gloriosa, Vinko, Asana, Abador, mid-early Ashton and Sherwood, mid-maturing Viola, Matrona, Nicholas, Twin and late-ripening Res.
Of the sugar varieties, the very early Meteor peas have proven themselves well, as well as Beagle, Little Marvel, the early varieties Medovik, Children's Sugar, early ripening Calvedon, Onward, Ambrosia, mid-season Sugar Oregon, Alderman, mid-season Zhegalova 112, Inexhaustible and late-ripening Oscar 195.
Among the brain varieties, the early-ripening Vera peas, the mid-ripening Debut and the late-ripening Belladonna 136 are popular.
Chickpea
Chick peas, or mutton peas, or bubble worm, or nakhat, or shish, or chickpeas (lat.Cicer arietinum)- pulses, especially popular in the Middle East. Chickpeas are the basis for many traditional Middle Eastern dishes, including falafel and hummus, as chickpeas have been cultivated in this region for seven and a half thousand years. Chickpea came to the territory of Rome and Greece in the Bronze Age, and even then several varieties of chickpea were known. In Rome, it was believed that these peas stimulate menstruation, promote sperm production and lactation, and have a diuretic effect.
At the beginning of the 9th century in Europe, chickpeas were already grown everywhere, and in the 17th century it was considered more nutritious and less gas-forming than sowing peas, or vegetable peas. Today, chickpeas grow in 30 countries around the world, but on an industrial scale they are grown mainly in the countries of North Africa, Turkey, Pakistan, India, China and Mexico.
Chickpea is a herbaceous self-pollinating annual with an erect, branched stem, reaching a height of 20 to 70 cm and covered with glandular pile. Branching can begin at the base of the stem or in the middle, depending on the cultivar. The root system of chickpea is pivotal, the main root reaches a length of one hundred and more centimeters, but the bulk of the roots lies at a depth of 20 cm. At the ends of the roots, tubers are formed containing nitrogen-fixing bacteria. The leaves of chickpea are also pubescent, compound, pinnate, consisting of 11-17 obovate or elliptical segments. The color of the leaves, depending on the variety, can also be green, yellow-green, bluish-green, and sometimes green with a purple tint. During flowering, small white, blue, yellow-green, purple or pink five-segmented flowers open on one-two-flowered peduncles. The fruit of chickpea is an oval, oblong-oval or rhombic pod with a length of 1.5 to 3.5 cm with a parchment inner layer. Seeds in the amount of one or two can be colored straw yellow, greenish or gray-violet. There is such a pattern: varieties with white flowers give light seeds, and varieties with pink and purple flowers give dark seeds. When ripe, the beans with seeds do not crack. Chickpea kernels can have an angular shape resembling a ram's head, they can be rounded or angular-rounded, similar to the head of an owl. By size, small-grain, medium-grain and large-seeded varieties of chickpea are distinguished.
Chickpea sprouts contain high-quality fats and proteins, a lot of calcium, potassium, magnesium, vitamins A and C, essential acids tryptophan and methionine. The grains contain protein, oil, carbohydrates, minerals and vitamins A, B1, B2, B3, B6, PP, A and C.
In agriculture, chickpea is a catch crop that replaces steam in dry conditions - it is used as a precursor for cereals. Chickpea is the most frost-resistant, heat-resistant and drought-resistant of legumes. In addition, it is not necessary to apply nitrogen fertilizers under the chickpea, since it itself is able to extract this element from the air and supply it to the soil. Chickpeas do not require high quality soil, but they will not thrive on clogged or heavy clay soils. Choose well-lit areas with loose, drained soil for chickpeas.
Lentils
Food lentils, or ordinary, or cultural (lat.Lens culinaris)- a herbaceous annual of the genus Lentil of the legume family, one of the most ancient crops, widely cultivated as a forage and food plant. This plant has been known for a long time: even in the Old Testament, it is mentioned that Esau exchanged his birthright for lentil stew. Lentils appeared from the southeast of Asia, but they are grown in all countries with a temperate and warm climate. V South America and in Australia, lentils are the basis of many national dishes; in India and China, they are considered the same national product as rice, and in Germany they are used to prepare a traditional Christmas dish.
The root of the lentil is thin, slightly branched and pubescent. The erect, branched stem reaches a height of 15 to 75 cm. Alternate, short-petiolate, paired-pinnate leaves terminate in a tendril. Lentil stipules are entire-edged, semi-spear-shaped. Thick peduncles are crowned with an axis. Small white, pink or purple flowers, collected in a racemose inflorescence, open in June-July. Hanging rhombic beans, about 1 cm long and up to 8 mm wide, contain 1 to 3 flattened seeds with an almost sharp edge. The color of the seeds depends on the variety.
Lentil fruits contain a large amount of iron and vegetable protein, which is easily absorbed by the human body, however, the content of tryptophan and sulfuric amino acids in lentils is not as high as in other legumes. And there is less fat in it than in peas. One serving of lentils contains 90% of the daily value of folate. Lentils also contain soluble fiber, which improves digestion, potassium, calcium, iron and phosphorus, as well as manganese, copper, zinc, iodine, cobalt, molybdenum and boron, omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids, vitamins C, A, PP and group B, as well as isoflavones, which suppress breast cancer.
Lentils, unpretentious to growing conditions, nevertheless, have their own preferences. For example, she prefers loose fertilized sandy loam and loamy soils of a neutral reaction. It grows in heavy soils, and even in acidified ones, but it will not give a good harvest in such soil. Add sand to the clay soil, and lime to the acidic soil, and then you can sow lentils. The best precursors for lentils are corn, potatoes, or winter crops.
There are six varieties of lentils:
- brown, mainly for soups. It cooks quickly, especially after pre-soaking, and has a nutty flavor;
- green is unripe brown lentils, which are added to salads, meat and rice dishes;
- yellow - unripe brown lentils without skin;
- red lentils are lentil grains without shells, so the process of making mashed potatoes or soup from them takes only 10-12 minutes;
- black lentils, or Beluga - very small lentils similar to beluga caviar, after cooking, retaining both their color and shape;
- French green lentils, bred in de Puy, which are considered the most delicious and delicious. It has a mild aroma, original marble pattern and soft skin. French lentils retain their shape during cooking, so they are used to make soups, salads, casseroles, and are also served as a side dish for fish and meat.
Beans
- a genus of the legume family, uniting almost a hundred species that grow in warm and temperate climates. The most popular species of the genus is the common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris), which is native to Latin America. Common beans differ in a variety of shapes and colors of leaves, flowers and fruits. Both seeds and beans of this ancient plant, which were cultivated in America by the Aztecs, are used for food. After Columbus's second voyage, beans came to Europe, where they were first grown as an ornamental plant, and only from the end of the 17th century they began to cultivate them as a vegetable crop.
In height, beans can reach from 50 cm to 3 m. Its highly branched and pubescent stem can be straight or curly. The leaves of the beans are ternary, double-pinned and long-petiolate. Moth flowers of white, purple and dark purple color, located on long pedicels of 2-6 pieces, are collected in axillary racemes. Bean fruits are curved or straight, nearly cylindrical or flattened hanging beans 5 to 20 cm long and 1-1.5 cm wide. The color of the pod ranges from pale yellow to deep purple. The beans contain from two to eight elliptical seeds, white or dark purple, solid or speckled, spotted or mosaic.
Bean seeds contain proteins, carbohydrates, fatty oil, carotene, phosphorus, potassium, zinc, copper, essential amino acids, flavonoids, sterols, organic acids (malonic, citric and malic), as well as vitamins - ascorbic and pantothenic acids, thiamine and pyridoxine. Raw beans, especially those with red seeds, contain lectins that must be neutralized by boiling for 30 minutes. Bean proteins are similar in composition to meat proteins. Soups, side dishes and canned food are made from beans. In some cases, beans are a dietary food. The beans are used to prepare an extract that lowers blood sugar and increases urine output. In folk medicine, bean bean infusions are used to treat rheumatism, hypertension and impaired salt metabolism.
Beans are grown in light, drained soil, fertilized with compost or humus. In composition, it can be loam or sandy loam. The site is best located on a south or southwest slope protected from the wind. Bean varieties are divided into three groups:
- with shelling, or grain beans - these varieties are distinguished by the presence of an inner dense parchment layer, therefore, they are grown, as a rule, for grain;
- with semi-sugar beans - in these varieties the parchment layer is not so dense or appears already at a late stage of grain development;
- with sugar, or asparagus beans - these are the most valuable and tasty varieties, since there is no parchment layer in their pods.
Early ripe beans are represented by the following varieties: Flat Long, Priusadebnaya, Saksa 615, Caramel, Shahinya, Golden Nectar, Belozernaya 361. Of the mid-season varieties, the most demanded are Motolskaya Belaya, Pation, Moskovskaya Belaya, Yubileynaya 287, Fire-red, Winner, Violet, and from late beans are most often preferred by the Blue Hilda, Queen Neckar and Krasivy Yas varieties. If you decide to grow asparagus beans, the best varieties of this variety are Indiana, Bergold, Reindeer King, Asparagus Gina, Panther, Olga, Paloma Scuba and Pensil Pod.
Of the varieties of curly beans, Violetta, Gerda, Turchanka, Golden Neck, Mauritanian, Lambada, Fatima, Winner and Purple Queen are most often cultivated, and of the bush varieties, the Oil King, Caramel, Indiana and Royal Purple Pod are the most famous.
Soy
It is an annual herb, a species of the genus Soybeans of the legume family. Soybean is cultivated in Southern Europe, Asia, South and North America, South and Central Africa, Australia and the Pacific Islands. Soy, like other legumes, is one of the most ancient cultivated plants - the history of its cultivation goes back at least five thousand years: the mention of soy is found in Chinese literature dating back to the third or fourth millennium BC. However, there is an opinion that soybeans as a cultivated plant was formed even earlier - 6-7 thousand years ago. Soy was introduced into the culture in China, and then it spread to Korea and Japan. The plant entered Europe in 1740 through France, and in 1790 it was brought to England as well, although it was only in 1885 that it was widely cultivated in Europe. In 1898, many varieties of soybeans from Asia and Europe were imported to the United States, and in the early thirties of the last century this crop was grown in America on an area of 1 million hectares. In the Russian Empire, the first soybeans were planted in 1877 on the territory of modern Ukraine - in the Tauride and Kherson provinces.
Currently, genetically modified soy is included in many products. The world leader in the production of GM soybeans is the American company Monsanto.
The popularity of food soybeans has earned such characteristics as:
- high productivity;
- high protein content;
- excellent results in the prevention of cardiovascular diseases and osteoporosis;
- the presence of valuable substances in the plant grains - vitamins E, PP, A, group B, calcium, potassium, magnesium, sulfur, chlorine, sodium, iron, manganese, copper, aluminum, molybdenum, nickel, cobalt, iodine, linoleic and linolenic acid ;
- unique properties that make it possible to produce healthy products from soy - soybean oil, milk, flour, meat, pasta, tofu, sauce and others.
In addition to the fact that soy is used as a useful and inexpensive substitute for meat and milk, it is a part of feed for young farm animals.
The root system of soybeans is taproot, the main root is thick, but not very long, and the lateral roots can extend to the sides underground for two meters. Soybean stems are thin or thick, erect, creeping or curly, well branching, from 15 to 200 cm in height. Lateral shoots extend from the stem at different angles, forming a sprawling, semi-spreading or compact bush. Both the stems and shoots of soybeans are covered with yellow, white or brown hair. When ripe, the stalk of soybeans becomes brown-yellow or ginger. Soybeans have alternate leaves (except for the first two opposite ones), usually trifoliate, with small stipules. The shape of the leaves, depending on the variety, can be rhombic, broadly ovate, oval, wedge-shaped with obtuse or pointed tops. In most varieties, when the fruits ripen, the leaves fall off, which greatly facilitates the harvest. Small white or purple soybean flowers are collected in axillary racemose inflorescences - sometimes short and few-flowered, and sometimes multi-flowered and long. Soybean fruits are straight, sword-like, slightly curved or sickle-shaped beans, convex or flat, light, brown or brown, with reddish pubescence, from 3 to 7 in length and from 0.5 to 1.5 cm in width. 4 grains - oval, round, oval-elongated, flat, convex, large, medium or small, green, yellow, brown, black, with a gray, light or dark brown scar.
Soy is drought tolerant, but if you want to get a good harvest, the soil in which it grows must be well moistened. It is better to grow soybeans in areas with fertile loamy or sandy loam soil, located in the open sun, but protected from the wind.
The cultivated soybean has six varieties:
- semi-cultural;
- indian;
- Chinese;
- Korean;
- Manchu;
- Slavic.
On the basis of these subspecies, soybean breeding was carried out, which resulted in many varieties and hybrids. On the territory of the former CIS, varieties of the Manchurian and Slavic subspecies and their hybrids are widespread. The most popular varieties in southern Russia and Ukraine can be considered Amethyst, Altair, Ivanka, Vityaz 50, Bystritsa 2, Kievskaya 98, Chernivtskaya 8, Romance, Terezinskaya 2, Deimos, Polesskaya 201, Ros, Veras, Yaselda, Volma, Pripyat and Oressa ... In the middle lane, the varieties Svetlaya, Kasatka, Okskaya, Lazurnaya, Harmony, Sonata, Lydia, Yankan, Aktay, Nega 1, Mageva and others are more often grown.
Peanut
Cultivated peanuts, or underground peanuts, or peanut (lat.Arachis hypogaea) Is an important agricultural plant grown on an industrial scale. Actually, it is wrong to call peanuts a nut, in fact, it is a legume grass native to South America. Peanuts were well known to the natives of Peru even before the Conquest. The Spaniards brought peanuts to Europe and the Philippines, and the Portuguese to India and Macau, as well as to Africa, from where they ended up with black slaves in North America. At first in the States, peanuts were fed to pigs, but during the Civil War, soldiers of both armies consumed them. At that time, peanuts were the food of the poor, but they were not massively grown as a food crop, and only in 1903, agrochemist George Washington Carver, studying peanuts, invented more than 300 products from it, including cosmetics, drinks, dyes, medicines, soap. , insect repellent, and even printing ink. The scientist convinced farmers to alternate the cultivation of cotton and peanuts in the same field, and since then this crop has become one of the main crops in the southern states of America. On the territory of the former USSR, peanuts are grown in Central Asia, in some places in the Caucasus and Ukraine, as well as in the southern regions of Russia.
Cultural peanuts- an annual plant with a height of 25 to 70 cm with a branched taproot system, erect, inexpressively faceted, pubescent or bare stems, recumbent or upward-directed branches, branched shoots, alternate pubescent paired-feathery leaves from 3 to 11 cm long. and the leaves themselves consist of two pairs of pointed elliptical leaflets and large, elongated, whole-edged and also pointed stipules that have grown together with them. Whitish or yellow-red peanut flowers, collected in 4-7 pieces in few-flowered clusters, bloom in early June or early July. The fruits are non-opening oval and swollen beans 1.5 to 6 cm long with a cobweb pattern on a porous peel, which, when ripe, tend to the ground, burrow into it and ripen there. Each bean contains 1 to 5 elongated beans the size of a bean, covered with dark red, greyish yellow, cream, or light pink skin. Fruits ripen in September or October.
Peanut seeds are saturated with fatty oil, which includes glycerides of stearic, palmitic, oleic, linoleic, lauric, behenic and other acids. In addition to oil, grains contain proteins, globulins, glutenins, starch, sugars, amino acids, vitamins E and B, magnesium, potassium, calcium, phosphorus and iron. Peanuts are used in the food industry for the preparation of confectionery and second courses, as well as the famous peanut butter. The medicinal properties of peanuts, which are a powerful antioxidant, are also well known.
Peanuts are grown on light loams, sandy loams and sands. The plot must be sunny and sheltered from the wind. There are four varieties of peanuts:
- Runner- fruitful varieties that are grown mainly for processing for oil, for example, Dixie Runner, Early Runner, Bradford Runner, Egyptian Giant, Georgia Green, Rhodesian Spanish Bunch and others;
- Virginia- varieties with the largest grains, from which salty and sweet nuts are produced. These include the North Carolina group of varieties (7, 9, 10C, 12C V11), the Virginia group of varieties (C92, 98R, 93B), as well as Wilson, Perry, Gregory, Gul, Shulamit, and others;
- Spanish (Spanish)- varieties with medium-sized grains covered with red-brown skin. These nuts are good in chocolate or sugar glaze, they contain a lot of oil and are used as raw materials. The varieties of this variety include Dixie Spanish, Argentinean, Spanet, Spantex, Shafers Spanish, Star, Comet, Florispan, Spankross, O "Lin, Spanko and others;
- Valencia- sweet nuts of this type are covered with a bright red skin. They are most often sold fried. This variety includes Tennessee White and Tennessee Red.
Fodder legumes
Vika
Sowing vetch, or peas (Latin Vicia)- a genus of flowering plants of the legume family, whose representatives grow in humid forests, steppes and shrubs, in flooded meadows, forest edges of regions with a temperate climate. Humanity grows some species of vetch for decorative purposes, but most of the plants of this genus are used for food or as green manure.
The genus is represented by both annuals and perennials with climbing or erect stems, paired-pinnate leaves ending in a tendril or straight bristle, and almost sessile flowers, single or collected in the axils, 2-3 pieces each. Vicky fruits are cylindrical flat-squeezed polyspermous or two-seeded beans. Vika is a good honey plant.
Vicu is eagerly eaten by cattle, and this has a good effect on the quality of milk, however, when rotted, the plant can cause miscarriage in cows. Vetch hay is an excellent food for adult cattle, but it is harmful to lactating mares, calves, foals and lambs. Vetch straw is nutritious but difficult to digest, so it is added to other feed in small portions. Boiled vetch chaff is an excellent food for pigs.
For green fertilization, vetch is grown as a catch crop, and as a green manure, it is of interest as a precursor for seedlings of peppers, tomatoes and other garden plants. Vetch is sown on cultivated and moistened nutrient soils of slightly acidic reaction. Swampy, acidic, saline and dry sandy soils are not suitable for its cultivation. The most famous varieties of sowing vetch are Nikolskaya, Lyudmila, Barnaulka, Lgovskaya 22 and Vera.
Clover
- a genus of plants in the legume family. The most famous species of this genus in culture is red clover, or meadow clover (Latin Trifolium pratense), which grows naturally in Europe, North Africa, Central and Western Asia.
Red clover- sometimes biennial, but more often a perennial herb, reaching a height of 15 to 55 cm. Its stems are branched, ascending, the leaves are trifoliate, as evidenced by the specific name, with finely toothed broad-ovate lobes of whole leaves with cilia along the edges. Globular red or white clover flowers are often arranged in pairs and are usually covered with top leaves. The fruit of the clover is a single-seeded egg-shaped bean. Seeds are round or angular, yellow-red or purple. Clover blooms in June-September, and its fruits ripen in August-October.
Vitamin concentrates are obtained from the leaves of clover, and the essential oil of the plant is used for aromatic baths and the production of homeopathic medicines. Red clover is one of the most valuable crops, which is used as green fodder and from which silage and haylage are made. Clover straw is also used to feed livestock. In folk medicine, infusion and decoction of clover was taken as a means of appetite, in the treatment of tuberculosis, cough, whooping cough, bronchial asthma, migraine, malaria, uterine bleeding and painful menstruation. Eyes sore from allergies were washed with fresh clover juice, and purulent ulcers and wounds were treated with a compress of crushed leaves.
In culture, clover is unpretentious, just as in nature, but it is better to sow it in the sun in slightly acidic or neutral soil, in which cereals previously grew. Before sowing, it is necessary to plow the area deeply and remove weeds from it.
If you are interested in the decorative qualities of the plant, then it is better to sow some sort of creeping clover (Trifolium repens), for example, Atropurpurea, Good Lac, Purpurasens, Swedish pink hybrid clover (Trifolium hybridum) or reddish clover (Trifolium rubens).
Alfalfa
It is a herbaceous plant, the type species of the genus Lucerne. In the wild, it grows in the Balkans and Asia Minor in the steppes, river valleys, dry meadows and grassy slopes, along forest edges, shrubs and pebbles, and is cultivated throughout the world as a fodder plant.
The stems of alfalfa are pubescent or glabrous, tetrahedral, strongly branching in the upper part and reaching a height of 80 cm. They can be straight or recumbent. The plant's rhizome is thick, powerful, deep-lying. Leaves are petiolate, whole, oblong-ovate, with leaves 1-2 cm long and 0.3-1 cm wide. On long axillary peduncles a dense capitate multi-flowered raceme 2-3 cm long, consisting of blue-violet flowers, is formed. The fruit of alfalfa is a pod with a diameter of up to 5 mm.
Alfalfa, like clover and vetch, is a melliferous plant - immediately after pumping out, golden-yellow alfalfa honey thickens to the state of homemade cream. Alfalfa is a valuable agricultural crop, which is grown not only for feed, but also for green fertilization, as well as green manure for cotton, grain and vegetable crops. Some plant varieties are used for food, adding to salads. As a forage plant, alfalfa has been cultivated for six or seven thousand years: from its natural range, it spread throughout the world with the armies of conquerors. For example, the Persians brought alfalfa to Greece, the Saracens to Spain, and the Spaniards to South America and Mexico, and from there the plant got to Texas and California. Alfalfa is now grown all over the world.
Alfalfa grows on well-drained, highly fertile medium loamy soils with a slightly acidic or neutral reaction. Do not sow it on acidic, waterlogged, saline, clayey or stony soils or where groundwater is high. When grown on poor soils, fertilizers must be applied, and saline soils require flush irrigation.
There are about 50 varieties of alfalfa, however, the varieties Laska, Rosinka, Lyuba, Northern Hybrid, Bride of the North, Marusinskaya 425, Bibinur, Fraver, Madalina, Kamila and others are usually grown.
In addition to alfalfa, vetch, and clover, dumplings, sainfoin, broad beans, ulcer and poultry feet are sometimes grown from legumes as forage plants, but these crops are less popular.
Ornamental legumes
Lupine
- a genus of plants in the legume family. The genus is represented by annual and perennial herbaceous plants, as well as shrubs and shrubs. The name of the plant is translated as "wolf", but among the people, lupines are often called "wolf beans". In the wild, lupine can be found in the Mediterranean, Africa, and in the Western Hemisphere, it grows from Patagonia to the Yukon and from the Atlantic to the Pacific Ocean. In total, there are no more than 200 plant species, but the very first white lupine was introduced into culture about 4000 years ago - in Ancient Greece, Egypt and Rome it was used as food, fertilizer and medicinal plant. And lupine mutable has been grown in culture since the time of the Incas.
Interest in lupine is caused by the high content of protein and oil in its seeds, in terms of indicators close to olive. Since ancient times, lupine seeds and its green mass have been used as livestock feed. The plant is also grown as a green manure. You can also use lupine as a green fertilizer - this allows you to keep the land clean and, by growing organic vegetables and cereals, save expensive fertilizers. Lupine is also in demand in pharmacology and medicine. But in summer cottages, this culture is grown as an ornamental flowering plant.
The root system of lupine is pivotal, reaching a depth of 1-2 meters. On the roots are nodules of bacteria that absorb nitrogen from the air and bind it. Herbaceous or woody stems of lupine, leafy to varying degrees depending on the species, reach a height of one and a half meters. Branches are erect, creeping or protruding. Finger-complex alternate leaves are connected to the stem by long petioles. Alternately, semi-whorled or whorled flowers form a multi-flowered apical raceme up to 1 m long. In zygomorphic lupine flowers, the sail is oval or rounded, straightened in the middle. The color of flowers can be cream, yellow, pink, red, purple and various shades of purple. The fruits are leathery, slightly bent or linear pods with an uneven surface of cream, brown or black color. The seeds of different types and varieties of lupine vary in size, shape and color. Their surface is fine-meshed or smooth.
Lupine is highly drought-resistant, prefers a temperate climate, although some species can even tolerate very low temperatures. This legume is sown in sandy loam or loamy soils of a neutral, slightly alkaline or slightly acidic reaction. The following types of lupine are grown in culture:
- blue (narrow-leaved) - varieties Nadezhda, Vityaz, Snezhet, Crystal, Raduzhny, Smena;
- yellow - varieties Nadezhny, Narochanskiy, Prestige, Zhitomirskiy, Fast-growing, Akademicheskiy 1, Demidovskiy, Fakel;
- white - varieties Gamma, Degas, Desnyansky;
- multi-leaved (refers to perennials) - varieties Albus (white), Burg Fraulen (boiling white), Schloss Frau (pale pink), Abendglut (dark red), Castellan (blue-violet), Carmineus (red), Apricot ( orange), Edelknabe (carmine), Roseus (pink), Kronloichter (bright yellow), Rubinkenig (ruby purple), Princess Juliana (white and pink).
Mimosa
- herbaceous perennial from the genus Mimosa, which includes about 600 species. Mimosa comes from the tropical regions of South America, but as an ornamental plant it is grown all over the world, including in indoor culture.
In height, mimosa reaches 30-70 cm, but sometimes it can grow up to one and a half meters. The plant has a thorny stem, leaves up to 30 cm long, bipinnate, possessing hypersensitivity: at sunset, in cloudy weather or when touched, they fold and fall. Small lilac spherical inflorescences up to 2 cm in diameter are formed on long peduncles. The fruit of mimosa is a hooked curved pod with 2-8 seeds that opens when ripe.
Those who decide to grow bashful mimosa in an apartment should know that due to its toxicity, it is necessary to keep the plant away from children and pets. In addition, mimosa does not tolerate tobacco smoke and immediately sheds its leaves in protest.
Acacia
Silver acacia, or whitewashed (Latin Acacia dealbata)- a species of trees of the genus Acacia of the Legume family native to the southeast coast of Australia and the island of Tasmania. This species grows in southern Europe, South Africa, Madagascar, the Azores and the western United States. In everyday life, silver acacia is usually called mimosa, although these crops belong to different genera.
Silver acacia- a fast-growing tree with a spreading crown, growing up to 10-12 m, and its trunk can reach 60-70 cm in diameter. The bark of the plant is gray-brown or brown, fissured, gum often protrudes from the cracks. Young branches of the plant are olive green with a bluish bloom, like the leaves, for which this acacia got its specific name. Twice pinnately dissected successive leaves 10-20 cm long consist of 8-24 pairs of small elongated leaves of the first order. On each leaflet there are up to 50 pairs of oblong leaflets of the second order, the width of which does not exceed 1 cm. 20-30 fragrant, very small bluish-yellow flowers are collected in heads with a diameter of 4 to 8 mm, which form racemose inflorescences, which in turn make up panicles ... Silver acacia fruits are elongated lanceolate, oblong, flat beans of light brown or violet-brown color, 1.5 to 8 cm long and up to 1 cm wide.In separate nests of pods there are very hard black or dark brown elliptical seeds 3 -4 mm. The tree blooms from late January to mid-April, and bears fruit in late summer or early autumn. Silver acacia is an excellent honey plant.
Acacia gum contains tannins, flowers - oil, which includes hydrocarbons, aldehydes, acid esters, acids and alcohol with the smell of ambergris, and flavonoids are found in pollen.
Silver acacia is grown only in warm climates, since it cannot withstand frosts below 10 degrees. You need to plant it in the sun, protecting it from gusts of wind, in the fertile soil of a neutral reaction. Acacia is drought-resistant, but the first time after planting it needs constant watering.
Legume properties
All leguminous plants have two-symmetrical irregular flowers, collected in axillary or apical heads or racemes. The most characteristic form of flowers is moth, for which legumes got their second name. Although some believe that the flowers of the legumes are more like a boat with a sail.
The roots of many legumes have a characteristic feature: growths are formed on them, in which colonies of nitrogen-fixing bacteria live, absorbing this element from the air and transforming it into a form more accessible to plants. This nitrogen serves as food for the plant itself, accumulating in all its organs, and is released into the soil. That is why legumes are grown as green manure and used as green manure.
The nutritional quality of legume seeds is difficult to overestimate, since due to the protein they contain, they are an inexpensive substitute for meat, which is especially important for vegetarians. In addition to protein, legumes contain vitamins and fiber, as well as other substances very valuable for the human body. Another advantage of legumes is that they do not accumulate nitrates and toxins, which is why legumes are so highly valued.
A number of leguminous plants are medicinal, for example, cassia, Japanese sophora, licorice, and Ural.
All legumes are grown by sowing seeds in open ground, and the seedling method is used only for thermophilic plants such as peanuts and beans. Pre-soaking the seed accelerates the emergence of seedlings, but the seeds should be in the water for no more than 12 hours, otherwise they may not germinate.
Almost all members of the Legume family prefer sandy loam or loamy soils of a neutral reaction, however, a slight shift to the acidic or alkaline side is possible.
Most legumes are in symbiosis with nodule bacteria, which supply nitrogen to the soil. But the ability to assimilate nitrogen from the air appears in plants only after flowering, therefore, at the very beginning of growth, it is necessary to apply a complete mineral fertilizer to the soil, including the nitrogen component. It is advisable to sow legumes after crops under which organic matter was introduced, and in order for nodules with bacteria to form on the roots of plants, it is necessary to use special bacterial fertilizers.
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