Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
Beans (
Phaseolus vulgaris
)
Overview of the legume family
COMMON NAME
GENUS
SPECIES
bean
Phaseolus
vulgaris
runner bean
Phaseolus
coccineus
hyacinth bean
Lablab
purpureus
lima bean, butter bean
Phaseolus
lunatus
fava bean
Vicia
faba
pea
Pisum
sativum
cowpea, black-eyed pea
Vigna
unguiculata
mung bean
Vigna
radiata
soybean (soya bean)
Glycine
max
chickpea, garbanzo
Cicer
arietinum
asparagus pea, winged bean
Tetragonolobus
purpureus
lentil
Lens
culinaris
peanut
Arachis
hypogaea
BEAN
Phaseolus vulgaris
Both pole beans (var.
vulgaris
) and bush beans (var.
nanus
) belong to the species
Phaseolus vulgaris
,
and both can simply be called beans or common beans. Although pole beans are climbing vines, botan-
ically speaking they do not develop tendrils to climb; rather, the plant itself winds around whatever it
encounters. Bush beans have limited growth and as such are relatively undemanding in their cultiva-
tion. In-between forms develop short, weak tendrils and grow 3-4 ft. (1-1.2 m) high, making them
ideal for a companion planting with corn (maize): corn acts as a trellis for the bean, and the bean fixes
