Pueraria DC.

First published in Ann. Sci. Nat. (Paris) 4: 97 (1825)
This genus is accepted
The native range of this genus is Asia to W. Pacific.

Descriptions

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

Morphology General Habit
Robust climbers or trailers, the roots sometimes tuberous
Morphology Leaves
Leaves large, pinnately 3-foliolate, the leaflets entire or sinuately lobed; stipules present, sometimes produced below the point of insertion; stipels present
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Inflorescences axillary, falsely racemose or paniculate, sometimes very long, the flowers often aggregated on nodose reduced side branches along the rhachis; bracts present, mostly small and soon falling; bracteoles present, sub-persistent or deciduous
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Calyx
Calyx 5-lobed or appearing 4-lobed, the upper pair of lobes joined to form an entire or bifid lip
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Corolla
Corolla small or medium-sized, mostly blue or purplish; standard rounded, with basal and mostly very marked inflexed auricles, but without appendages
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Androecium Stamens
Vexillary filament usually joined to the tube but sometimes free; anthers uniform
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Gynoecium Pistil
Ovary linear, many-ovuled, narrowed above; style curved, scarcely stiffened, widest at the base just above the narrowing of the ovary, gradually becoming filiform towards the apex; stigma terminal, minute, capitate, sometimes with some minute hairs
Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
Pods long and linear, compressed, many-seeded, pubescent
Morphology Reproductive morphology Seeds
Seeds small, oblong, subglobose or almost cylindrical, oftenminutely shagreened; hilum small, central, oblong-elliptic; rim-aril absent, but a small cartilaginous remnant of the funicle often present.
[FTEA]

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

Vernacular
kudzu vine
Habit
Lianas, shrubs or climbing herbs, usually with large tuberous roots
Ecology
Seasonally dry tropical and subtropical forest, rain forest, forest margins and scrub vegetation, often on open limestone and in rocky areas
Distribution
Asia (lowland to montane Indian subcontinent, Indo-China, SW China, Malesia, Papuasia, Pacific); the Kudzu vine (P. montana (Lour.) Merr. var. lobata (Willd.) Maesen & S.M.Almeida) widespread to temperate E Asia, Australia and introduced into Africa and SE USA; tropical Kudzu (P. phaseoloides (Roxb.) Benth.) is widely introduced in Africa and the Neotropics
Note
Placed in subtribe Glycininae; Lee & Hymowitz (2001) show Pueraria to be polyphyletic, with species of the non-typical sections Breviramulae and Schizophyllon being basally branching to those of the typical section Pueraria; Doyle et al. (2003) resolve a Pueraria-Pseudovigna clade sister to an Amphicarpaea-Glycine clade, with Dumasia being sister to both these clades

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).

[LOWO]

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

Morphology General Habit
Perennial twining or procumbent herbs or in the case of G. max (L.) Merrill an annual erect herb
Morphology Leaves
Leaves pinnately or, in 3 Australian species, digitately 3-foliolate; stipules small, deciduous; stipels present
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Inflorescences racemose or falsely racemose, axillary, the flowers sometimes fascicled along the rhachis, more rarely terminal and paniculate, or flowers solitary or in sessile axillary fascicles
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers
Flowers small, white to blue or purplish
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Calyx
Calyx 5-lobed, somewhat 2-lipped; the upper pair of lobes joined, often almost for their entire length
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Corolla
Standard obovate, rhomboid or round, slightly auriculate at the base, glabrous
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Androecium Stamens
Vexillary stamen joined to others or sometimes becoming free with age; anthers uniform
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Gynoecium Pistil
Ovary several-many-ovuled; style short, slender but not filiform, slightly incurved; stigma small, terminal, capitate
Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
Pod linear or oblong, subcylindrical or compressed, straight or falcate, ± thinly septate
Morphology Reproductive morphology Seeds
Seeds ovoid-oblong or subglobose; hilum short, lateral, with a small scale-like aril.
[FTEA]

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

Note

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).

Glycine has had a convoluted taxonomic history; see also under Neonotonia
Vernacular
soyabean
Habit
Twining herbs
Ecology
Seasonally dry tropical to warm temperate open woodland, thicket, wooded grassland, clearings, riverbanks and dry hillsides
Distribution
principally Australia (16 spp.), 2 of which widespread to Pacific Islands, Taiwan, Japan and S China; 2 spp. endemic to China, Taiwan, G. max (L.) Merr. (soyabean; soybean) from E Russia, Korea, China and Japan but widely cultivated
[LOWO]

Uses

Use
Used as pasture, fodder and cover crops, green manure, human food (tubers), thickening agent (starch from tubers), cordage (fibre); Kudzu vine is often an invasive weed
[LOWO]

Use
Soyabean is one of man's principal pulse and food product crops; also used as fodder
[LOWO]

Sources

  • Flora of Tropical East Africa

    • Flora of Tropical East Africa
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0
  • Herbarium Catalogue Specimens

  • Kew Names and Taxonomic Backbone

    • The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants 2024. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and https://powo.science.kew.org/
    • © Copyright 2023 International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0
  • Legumes of the World Online

    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0
  • World Checklist of Vascular plants (WCVP)

    • The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants 2024. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and https://powo.science.kew.org/
    • © Copyright 2023 World Checklist of Vascular Plants. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0