Knowra Fabaceae Fabaceae Fabaceae is a flowering-plant family that includes beans, peas, lentils, clovers, and many trees. Its members typically produce fruits called legumes and often form root partnerships with nitrogen-fixing bacteria.
Legume : A dry fruit that develops from one carpel and typically splits along two seams when mature. The family takes its name from this characteristic fruit, though some members have modified fruits.
Pulse (legume) : A dried edible seed of a legume crop, such as lentils, chickpeas, or dry beans. Pulses are a major food category drawn from several Fabaceae crops.
Garden pea : A cultivated variety of pea grown for its edible seeds and immature pods. Its flower and pod exemplify familiar features of many cultivated legumes.
Caesalpinioideae : A major subfamily of Fabaceae that includes many tropical trees and plants with varied flower forms. Its flowers often differ from the classic pea-like form associated with legumes.
Papilionaceous flower : A pea-like flower with a large upper petal, two side petals, and two lower petals often joined into a keel. This distinctive floral form characterizes many familiar legumes, including peas and beans.
Soybean : A legume species cultivated for protein-rich seeds and oil, widely used in food and animal feed. Soybean is one of the family's most widely cultivated food and oil crops.
Common bean : A domesticated legume species grown worldwide for edible seeds and green pods. It is a staple crop with extensive variation in seed and pod forms.
Papilionoideae : The largest Fabaceae subfamily, containing many crops with characteristic pea-like flowers. This lineage includes many familiar beans, peas, and other cultivated legumes.
Nitrogen fixation : The conversion of atmospheric nitrogen gas into biologically usable compounds. Many legumes gain usable nitrogen through bacterial partners in their roots.
Peanut : A legume crop whose fertilized flower stalk grows into the soil, where its pods mature underground. Its unusual underground fruit development distinguishes this important Fabaceae crop.
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