Vigna trilobata (L.)Verdc.

Family Description

Trees, shrubs or herbs, sometimes twinging or climbing. Leaves althernate, sometimes simple but usually with few to many leaflets arranged trifoliately, pinnately, bipinnately or digitately; stipules usually present. Flowers zygomorphic and bisexual, or actinomorphic and osmetimes polygamous; infloresence often terminal, axillary or supra axillary. Calyx campanulate or tubular, 5-toothed, the posterior pair of teeth often ± connate. Petals mostly 5 or sometimes fewer, free or some or all connate, equal or unequal. Stamens commonly 10, rarely only 3 or 7 fetile and fully developed sometimes numerous; filaments variously untied, rarely free. Ovary monocarpellate, superior, unilocular or sometimes falsely plurilocular, ovules one or more borne on posterior suture; style simple, filiform or capitate, al. Fryit a pod (legume), valves usually dry rarely fleshy, usually dehiscent along both sutures or breaking transversely into 1-seeded segments, or indehicent. Seeds often pea- or bean-like, rarely conspicuously arrilate.
Leaves simple or with 2 to many leaflets arranged digitately or more commonly, pinnately. Flowers zygomorphic, small or large. Calyx often somewhat unequal, 4-5-toothed, the upper (posterior) 2 ± connate. Petals usually 5, the uppermost (standard) generally longer than the others, the 2 lateral petals (wings) usually parallel to each other and the 2 lowest often partially connate to form the keel to which the wings often adhere. Stamens usually 10, filaments free or more usually variously united: monadelphous with all 10 connate into a tube, or diadelphous where 9 are connate into a split tube and one (posterior) free or more rarely, where the filaments are united in two bundles of 5. Style usually upwardly curved, hooked or sometimes coiled.

Genus Description

Annual or perennial, erect or twining gerbs. leaves pinnately 3-foilate,leaflets entire or lobed, stiples present; stipules auriculate or extendingas lobe below point of attachment. Racemes axillary, flowers borne on glandulars swellings. Calyx campanulate, teeth lanceolate, upper 2 ± standard, ariculed, keel incurved making almost a complete turn . style beared on inner side near tip and usually ending beyond stigma in a distinct beak. Pods linear, ± cylindric, incompletely septate, values thin, subcoriaceous, becoming strongly twisted on dehiscence.

Species description

Straggling annual, stems and petioles deflexed hairsute. leaflets unequally 3-lobed (entire, broadly elliptic in seedings) 1.3-4.5 x 1-3.5cm, lobes oblong-spathulate, middle one longer and broder, obtuse; stiples narrowly elliptic 1-2mm, petioles 2-10cm, stipules ovate 4-20 x 3-12mm, cordate at base or extending as a rounded lobe below point of insertion. Racemes 2-10cm, 2-5(-8) flowered. Petals yellow, 6-7mm, standard suborbicular, 7-8mm broad. pods 3-5 x 0.3cm, sparsely appressed pubescent, seeds 6-12, reniform 2 x 1.5, black.

Paro. 2550m.