Varieties of soybean seeds, a popular legume
A flowering legume
The term
legume has two closely related meanings in
botany, a situation encountered with many botanical common names of useful plants whereby an applied name can refer to either the plant itself, or to the edible fruit (or useful part). Thus, "legume" can be:
- the common name for plant species in the Family Fabaceae (or Leguminosae);
- the name of a type of fruit, characteristic of legumous plants. To wit:
:A
legume is a
simple dry fruit that develops from a simple
carpel and usually
dehisces (opens along a seam) on two sides. A common name for this type of fruit is a "pod", although pod is also applied to a few other fruit types. Well-known plants that bear
legume fruits include
alfalfa,
clover,
pea,
bean, and
peanuts. A peanut is not a
nut in the botanical sense; a peanut is an
indehiscent legume, that is, one that does not spontaneously split open along a seam.
Legumes are noteworthy for their ability to
fix atmospheric nitrogen, an accomplishment attributable to a symbiotic relationship with certain bacteria known as
rhizobia found in
root nodules of these plants. The ability to form this symbiosis reduces
fertilizer costs for farmers that grow legumes, and means that legumes can be used in a
crop rotation to replenish soil that has been depleted of
nitrogen.
Legume seed and foliage has a comparatively higher
protein content than non-legume material, probably due to the additional nitrogen that legumes receive through nitrogen-fixation symbiosis. This high protein content makes them desirable crops in
agriculture. Farmed legumes fall into two classes:
forage and
grain. Forage legumes, like
alfalfa,
clover and vetch, are sown in
pasture and grazed by livestock. Grain legumes are cultivated for their
seeds, and are also called
pulses. The seeds are used for human and animal consumption or for the production of oils for industrial uses. Grain legumes include
beans,
lentils,
lupins,
peas,
peanuts and
soybeans.
Note the similarity to the French word "légume", meaning "vegetable".
External links
Category:Legumes
be:Бабовыя
de:Hülse (Frucht)
es:Legumbre
pt:Legume