Pseudovigna (Harms) Verdc.

Leguminosae, J. B. Gillett, R. M. Polhill & B. Verdcourt. Flora of Tropical East Africa. 1971

Morphology General Habit

Perennial prostrate or climbing herb from a woody rootstock

Morphology Leaves

Leaves pinnately 3-foliolate; stipules and stipels present

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers

Flowers in few-flowered axillary falsely racemose inflorescences

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Calyx

Calyx 5-lobed, the upper pair oflobes united for just under half their length

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Corolla

Corolla medium-sized; standard obovate, auriculate, but without appendages; wings oblanceolate; keel neither beaked nor incurved

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Androecium Stamens

Vexillary stamen free; anthers ± uniform

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Gynoecium Pistil

Ovary oblong, 3-ovuled; style tenuous and flattened below, bent and then cylindrical (but nowhere thickened) above, glabrous save where it merges into the ovary; stigma absolutely terminal, penicillate

Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits

Pods oblong, bristly, septate

Morphology Reproductive morphology Seeds

Seeds oblong-reniform, granular; rim-aril little developed but a papery funicle-remnant persistent.

Legumes of the World. Edited by G. Lewis, B. Schrire, B. MacKinder & M. Lock. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. (2005)

Habit

Herbs

Ecology

Seasonally dry tropics; the low altitude species occurs in grassland or low bushland, often in cultivated land or near swamps; the other is from forest, near rivers and in clearings, or in woodland or wooded grassland

Distribution

E and W Africa (P. argentea (Willd.) Verdc. is ± coastal in both E and W Africa)

Note

See comments on relationships under Pseudeminia

Previous accounts of the Phaseoleae by Baudet (1978) and Lackey (1981) recognised 90 and 84 genera and c. 1540 and 1480 species respectively in the tribe. In an equivalent, i.e. traditionally held view of Phaseoleae, 89 genera and (1554)–1567–(1580) species are treated here (Table 9; Fig. 47). Changes between Baudet (1978) and this treatment are that eleven genera are now in synonymy or have subsequently been placed in Millettieae, two genera have been transferred from Desmodieae and eight new genera have been added. Vigna has traditionally been thought to comprise some 150–200 species, but Vigna sens. strict. may contain fewer than 100.

Recent molecular analyses of the tribe, however, have emphasised both the polyphyletic and paraphyletic nature of Phaseoleae as traditionally circumscribed (Bruneau & Doyle, 1990; Doyle & Doyle, 1993; Delgado Salinas et al., 1993; Bruneau et al., 1995; Doyle et al., 1997, 2000; Kajita et al., 2001; Goel et al., 2001; Lee & Hymowitz, 2001). This has required a radical realignment of elements of the phaseoloids (Table 9; Fig. 47), with at least two major clades being evident: Phaseoleae subtribes Diocleinae and Ophrestiinae which together with tribe Abreae are allied to the core-Millettieae (Fig. 45), and the remaining groups comprising a Phaseoleae sens. lat. clade. The rbcL phylogeny of Kajita et al. (2001) and the ITS analysis of Hu et al. (2002) are equivocal as to which clade subtribe Clitoriinae belongs. Phaseoleae sens. lat. also includes two traditionally independent tribes, the Desmodieae and Psoraleeae. Delimiting a recircumscribed Phaseoleae sens. strict is thus very problematic. A solution may be to recognise a broad tribe Phaseoleae, comprising the subtribes Kennediinae, Cajaninae, Phaseolinae and Glycininae, assorted basally branching genera, and tribes Desmodieae and Psoraleeae (both treated at subtribal level).