The Fabaceae or Leguminosae,International Code of Nomenclature for algae, fungi, and plants.
Article 18.5 states: "The following names, of long usage, are treated as validly published: ....Leguminosae (nom. alt.: Fabaceae; type: Faba Mill. Vicia L.; ... When the Papilionaceae are regarded as a family distinct from the remainder of the Leguminosae, the name Papilionaceae is conserved against Leguminosae." English pronunciations are as follows: , and . commonly known as the legume, pea, or bean family, are a large and agriculturally important

family Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (), commonly called angiosperms. The term "angiosperm" is derived from the Greek words ('container, vessel') and ('seed'), and refers to those plants t ...

s. It includes trees, shrubs, and

perennial A perennial plant or simply perennial is a plant that lives more than two years. The term ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the years") is often used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. The term is also widel ...

or annual

herbaceous plant Herbaceous plants are vascular plants that have no persistent woody stems above ground. This broad category of plants includes many perennials, and nearly all annuals and biennials. Definitions of "herb" and "herbaceous" The fourth edition ...

s, which are easily recognized by their

fruit In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants that is formed from the ovary after flowering. Fruits are the means by which flowering plants (also known as angiosperms) disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in partic ...

( legume) and their compound, stipulate leaves. The family is widely distributed, and is the third-largest land plant family in number of species, behind only the

Orchidaceae Orchids are plants that belong to the family Orchidaceae (), a diverse and widespread group of flowering plants with blooms that are often colourful and fragrant. Along with the Asteraceae, they are one of the two largest families of flowerin ...

and

Asteraceae The family Asteraceae, alternatively Compositae, consists of over 32,000 known species of flowering plants in over 1,900 genera within the order Asterales. Commonly referred to as the aster, daisy, composite, or sunflower family, Compositae ...

, with about 765 genera and nearly 20,000 known species.Judd, W. S., Campbell, C. S. Kellogg, E. A. Stevens, P.F. Donoghue, M. J. (2002), Plant systematics: a phylogenetic approach, Sinauer Axxoc, 287-292. . The five largest genera of the family are '' Astragalus'' (over 3,000 species), '' Acacia'' (over 1,000 species), '' Indigofera'' (around 700 species), ''

Crotalaria ''Crotalaria'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Fabaceae (subfamily Faboideae) commonly known as rattlepods. The genus includes over 700 species of herbaceous plants and shrubs. Africa is the continent with the majority of ''Crotalari ...

'' (around 700 species), and '' Mimosa'' (around 400 species), which constitute about a quarter of all legume species. The ca. 19,000 known legume species amount to about 7% of flowering plant species. Fabaceae is the most common family found in tropical rainforests and dry forests of the

Americas The Americas, which are sometimes collectively called America, are a landmass comprising the totality of North America, North and South America. The Americas make up most of the land in Earth's Western Hemisphere and comprise the New World. ...

and

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

. Recent molecular and morphological evidence supports the fact that the Fabaceae is a single monophyletic family.Lewis G., Schrire B., Mackinder B. and Lock M. 2005. (eds.) Legumes of the world. The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, Reino Unido. 577 pages. 2005. . This conclusion has been supported not only by the degree of interrelation shown by different groups within the family compared with that found among the Leguminosae and their closest relations, but also by all the recent phylogenetic studies based on DNA sequences.Doyle, J. J., J. A. Chappill, C.D. Bailey, & T. Kajita. 2000. Towards a comprehensive phylogeny of legumes: evidence from rbcL sequences and non-molecular data. pp. 1 -20 in Advances in legume systematics, part 9, (P. S. Herendeen and A. Bruneau, eds.). Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, UK. These studies confirm that the Fabaceae are a monophyletic group that is closely related to the families Polygalaceae, Surianaceae and

Quillajaceae Quillajaceae is a family of flowering plants. It contains only two extant species, '' Quillaja brasiliensis'' and ''Quillaja saponaria ''Quillaja saponaria'', the soap bark tree or soapbark, is an evergreen tree in the family Quillajaceae ...

and that they belong to the order Fabales. Along with the cereals, some

s and tropical roots, a number of Leguminosae have been a staple human food for millennia and their use is closely related to

human evolution Human evolution is the evolutionary process within the history of primates that led to the emergence of '' Homo sapiens'' as a distinct species of the hominid family, which includes the great apes. This process involved the gradual developmen ...

.Burkart, A. Leguminosas. ''In:'' Dimitri, M. 1987. ''Enciclopedia Argentina de Agricultura y Jardinería''. Tomo I. Descripción de plantas cultivadas. Editorial ACME S.A.C.I., Buenos Aires. pages: 467-538. The family Fabaceae includes a number of plants that are common in agriculture, including ''Glycine max'' (

soybean The soybean, soy bean, or soya bean (''Glycine max'') is a species of legume native to East Asia, widely grown for its edible bean, which has numerous uses. Traditional unfermented food uses of soybeans include soy milk, from which tofu ...

), '' Phaseolus'' (beans), ''Pisum sativum'' (

pea The pea is most commonly the small spherical seed or the seed-pod of the flowering plant species ''Pisum sativum''. Each pod contains several peas, which can be green or yellow. Botanically, pea pods are fruit, since they contain seeds and d ...

), ''Cicer arietinum'' ( chickpeas), ''Vicia faba'' ( broad bean), ''Medicago sativa'' ( alfalfa), ''Arachis hypogaea'' (

peanut The peanut (''Arachis hypogaea''), also known as the groundnut, goober (US), pindar (US) or monkey nut (UK), is a legume crop grown mainly for its edible seeds. It is widely grown in the tropics and subtropics, important to both small an ...

), ''

Ceratonia siliqua The carob ( ; ''Ceratonia siliqua'') is a flowering evergreen tree or shrub in the Caesalpinioideae sub-family of the legume family, Fabaceae. It is widely cultivated for its edible fruit pods, and as an ornamental tree in gardens and lands ...

'' (carob), and '' Glycyrrhiza glabra'' ( liquorice). A number of species are also weedy

pests PESTS was an anonymous American activist group formed in 1986 to critique racism, tokenism, and exclusion in the art world. PESTS produced newsletters, posters, and other print material highlighting examples of discrimination in gallery represent ...

in different parts of the world, including: '' Cytisus scoparius'' (broom), ''

Robinia pseudoacacia ''Robinia pseudoacacia'', commonly known in its native territory as black locust, is a medium-sized hardwood deciduous tree, belonging to the tribe Robinieae of the legume family Fabaceae. It is endemic to a few small areas of the United Sta ...

'' (black locust)'', Ulex europaeus'' (gorse), '' Pueraria montana'' (kudzu), and a number of '' Lupinus'' species.

Etymology

The name 'Fabaceae' comes from the defunct genus ''Faba'', now included in '' Vicia''. The term "faba" comes from Latin, and appears to simply mean "bean". Leguminosae is an older name still considered valid, and refers to the

of these plants, which are called legumes.

Description

Fabaceae range in habit from giant trees (like '' Koompassia excelsa'') to small annual herbs, with the majority being herbaceous perennials. Plants have indeterminate inflorescences, which are sometimes reduced to a single flower. The flowers have a short

hypanthium In angiosperms, a hypanthium or floral cup is a structure where basal portions of the calyx, the corolla, and the stamens form a cup-shaped tube. It is sometimes called a floral tube, a term that is also used for corolla tube and calyx tube. It ...

and a single carpel with a short gynophore, and after fertilization produce fruits that are legumes.

Growth habit

The Fabaceae have a wide variety of growth forms, including trees, shrubs, herbaceous plants, and even

vine A vine (Latin ''vīnea'' "grapevine", "vineyard", from ''vīnum'' "wine") is any plant with a growth habit of trailing or scandent (that is, climbing) stems, lianas or runners. The word ''vine'' can also refer to such stems or runners themsel ...

s or lianas. The herbaceous plants can be annuals,

biennials A biennial plant is a flowering plant that, generally in a temperate climate, takes two years to complete its biological life cycle. Life cycle In its first year, the biennal plant undergoes primary growth, during which its vegetative structures ...

, or perennials, without basal or terminal leaf aggregations. Many Legumes have tendrils. They are upright plants, epiphytes, or vines. The latter support themselves by means of shoots that twist around a support or through cauline or foliar tendrils. Plants can be heliophytes, mesophytes, or

xerophyte A xerophyte (from Ancient Greek language, Greek ξηρός ''xeros'' 'dry' + φυτόν ''phuton'' 'plant') is a species of plant that has adaptations to survive in an environment with little liquid water, such as a desert such as the Sahara or pl ...

Leaves

The leaves are usually

alternate Alternative or alternate may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * Alternative (''Kamen Rider''), a character in the Japanese TV series ''Kamen Rider Ryuki'' * ''The Alternative'' (film), a 1978 Australian television film * ''The Alternative ...

and compound. Most often they are even- or odd-

pinnate Pinnation (also called pennation) is the arrangement of feather-like or multi-divided features arising from both sides of a common axis. Pinnation occurs in biological morphology, in crystals, such as some forms of ice or metal crystals, an ...

ly compound (e.g. '' Caragana'' and ''

Robinia ''Robinia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Fabaceae, tribe Robinieae, native to North America. Commonly known as locusts, they are deciduous trees and shrubs growing tall. The leaves are pinnate with 7–21 oval leaflets. The flowe ...

'' respectively), often trifoliate (e.g. ''

Trifolium Clover or trefoil are common names for plants of the genus ''Trifolium'' (from Latin ''tres'' 'three' + ''folium'' 'leaf'), consisting of about 300 species of flowering plants in the legume or pea family Fabaceae originating in Europe. The gen ...

'', '' Medicago'') and rarely palmately compound (e.g. '' Lupinus''), in the Mimosoideae and the Caesalpinioideae commonly bipinnate (e.g. '' Acacia'', '' Mimosa''). They always have stipules, which can be leaf-like (e.g. '' Pisum''), thorn-like (e.g. ''

'') or be rather inconspicuous. Leaf margins are entire or, occasionally, serrate. Both the leaves and the leaflets often have wrinkled pulvini to permit

nastic movements Nastic movements are non-directional responses to stimuli (e.g. temperature, humidity, light irradiance), and are usually associated with plants. The movement can be due to changes in turgor. Decrease in turgor pressure causes shrinkage while ...

. In some species, leaflets have evolved into tendrils (e.g. '' Vicia''). Many species have leaves with structures that attract ants which protect the plant from herbivore insects (a form of mutualism).

Extrafloral nectaries Nectar is a sugar-rich liquid produced by plants in glands called nectaries or nectarines, either within the flowers with which it attracts pollinating animals, or by extrafloral nectaries, which provide a nutrient source to animal mutualis ...

are common among the Mimosoideae and the Caesalpinioideae, and are also found in some Faboideae (e.g. '' Vicia sativa''). In some '' Acacia'', the modified hollow stipules are inhabited by ants and are known as domatia.

Roots

Many Fabaceae host

bacteria Bacteria (; singular: bacterium) are ubiquitous, mostly free-living organisms often consisting of one biological cell. They constitute a large domain of prokaryotic microorganisms. Typically a few micrometres in length, bacteria were am ...

in their roots within structures called root nodules. These bacteria, known as rhizobia, have the ability to take

nitrogen Nitrogen is the chemical element with the symbol N and atomic number 7. Nitrogen is a nonmetal and the lightest member of group 15 of the periodic table, often called the pnictogens. It is a common element in the universe, estimated at se ...

gas (N₂) out of the air and convert it to a form of nitrogen that is usable to the host plant ( NO₃⁻ or NH₃ ). This process is called nitrogen fixation. The legume, acting as a host, and rhizobia, acting as a provider of usable nitrate, form a symbiotic relationship. Members of the

Phaseoleae The plant tribe Phaseoleae is one of the subdivisions of the legume subfamily Faboideae, in the unranked NPAAA clade. This group includes many of the beans cultivated for human and animal food, most importantly from the genera ''Glycine'', ' ...

genus ''

Apios ''Apios'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Fabaceae. It belongs to the subfamily Faboideae The Faboideae are a subfamily of the flowering plant family Fabaceae or Leguminosae. An acceptable alternative name for the subfamily is Pa ...

'' form tubers, which can be edible.

Flowers

The

flower A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants (plants of the division Angiospermae). The biological function of a flower is to facilitate reproduction, usually by providing a mechanis ...

s often have five generally fused

sepal A sepal () is a part of the flower of angiosperms (flowering plants). Usually green, sepals typically function as protection for the flower in bud, and often as support for the petals when in bloom., p. 106 The term ''sepalum'' was coine ...

s and five free petals. They are generally hermaphroditic and have a short

, usually cup-shaped. There are normally ten

stamen The stamen (plural ''stamina'' or ''stamens'') is the pollen-producing reproductive organ of a flower. Collectively the stamens form the androecium., p. 10 Morphology and terminology A stamen typically consists of a stalk called the fila ...

s and one elongated superior ovary, with a curved style. They are usually arranged in indeterminate

inflorescence An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Morphologically, it is the modified part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are forme ...

s. Fabaceae are typically entomophilous plants (i.e. they are pollinated by

insect Insects (from Latin ') are pancrustacean hexapod invertebrates of the class Insecta. They are the largest group within the arthropod phylum. Insects have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body ( head, thorax and abdomen), three pa ...

s), and the flowers are usually showy to attract pollinators. In the Caesalpinioideae, the flowers are often zygomorphic, as in '' Cercis'', or nearly symmetrical with five equal petals, as in '' Bauhinia''. The upper petal is the innermost one, unlike in the Faboideae. Some species, like some in the genus '' Senna'', have asymmetric flowers, with one of the lower petals larger than the opposing one, and the style bent to one side. The calyx, corolla, or stamens can be showy in this group. In the Mimosoideae, the flowers are actinomorphic and arranged in globose inflorescences. The petals are small and the stamens, which can be more than just 10, have long, coloured filaments, which are the showiest part of the flower. All of the flowers in an inflorescence open at once. In the Faboideae, the flowers are zygomorphic, and have a specialized structure. The upper petal, called the banner or standard, is large and envelops the rest of the petals in bud, often reflexing when the flower blooms. The two adjacent petals, the wings, surround the two bottom petals. The two bottom petals are fused together at the apex (remaining free at the base), forming a boat-like structure called the keel. The stamens are always ten in number, and their filaments can be fused in various configurations, often in a group of nine stamens plus one separate stamen. Various genes in the ''CYCLOIDEA (CYC)/DICHOTOMA (DICH)'' family are expressed in the upper (also called dorsal or adaxial) petal; in some species, such as '' Cadia'', these genes are expressed throughout the flower, producing a radially symmetrical flower.

Fruit

The ovary most typically develops into a legume. A legume is a simple dry fruit that usually dehisces (opens along a seam) on two sides. A common name for this type of fruit is a "pod", although that can also be applied to a few other fruit types. A few species have evolved samarae, loments, follicles, indehiscent legumes, achenes, drupes, and

berries A berry is a small, pulpy, and often edible fruit. Typically, berries are juicy, rounded, brightly colored, sweet, sour or tart, and do not have a stone or pit, although many pips or seeds may be present. Common examples are strawberries, ras ...

from the basic legume fruit.

Physiology and biochemistry

The Fabaceae are rarely

cyanogenic Cyanide is a naturally occurring, rapidly acting, toxic chemical that can exist in many different forms. In chemistry, a cyanide () is a chemical compound that contains a functional group. This group, known as the cyano group, consists of a ...

. Where they are, the cyanogenic compounds are derived from

tyrosine -Tyrosine or tyrosine (symbol Tyr or Y) or 4-hydroxyphenylalanine is one of the 20 standard amino acids that are used by cells to synthesize proteins. It is a non-essential amino acid with a polar side group. The word "tyrosine" is from the G ...

, phenylalanine or leucine. They frequently contain alkaloids. Proanthocyanidins can be present either as cyanidin or

delphinidine Delphinidin (also delphinidine) is an anthocyanidin, a primary plant pigment, and also an antioxidant. Delphinidin gives blue hues to flowers in the genera ''Viola'' and '' Delphinium''. It also gives the blue-red color of the grape that produc ...

or both at the same time. Flavonoids such as kaempferol,

quercitin Quercetin is a plant flavonol from the flavonoid group of polyphenols. It is found in many fruits, vegetables, leaves, seeds, and grains; capers, red onions, and kale are common foods containing appreciable amounts of it. It has a bitter flavor ...

and

myricetin Myricetin is a member of the flavonoid class of polyphenolic compounds, with antioxidant properties. Common dietary sources include vegetables (including tomatoes), fruits (including oranges), nuts, berries, tea, and red wine. Myricetin is struc ...

are often present.

Ellagic acid Ellagic acid is a polyphenol found in numerous fruits and vegetables. It is the dilactone of hexahydroxydiphenic acid. Name The name comes from the French term ''acide ellagique'', from the word ''galle'' spelled backwards because it can be ...

has never been found in any of the genera or species analysed. Sugars are transported within the plants in the form of sucrose.

C3 photosynthesis carbon fixation is the most common of three metabolic pathways for carbon fixation in photosynthesis, along with and CAM. This process converts carbon dioxide and ribulose bisphosphate (RuBP, a 5-carbon sugar) into two molecules of 3-phosph ...

has been found in a wide variety of genera. The family has also evolved a unique chemistry. Many legumes contain toxic and indigestible substances, antinutrients, which may be removed through various processing methods. Pterocarpans are a class of molecules (derivatives of isoflavonoids) found only in the Fabaceae. Forisome proteins are found in the sieve tubes of Fabaceae; uniquely they are not dependent on ADT.

Evolution, phylogeny and taxonomy

Evolution

The order Fabales contains around 7.3% of eudicot species and the greatest part of this diversity is contained in just one of the four families that the order contains: Fabaceae. This clade also includes the families Polygalaceae, Surianaceae and

and its origins date back 94 to 89 million years, although it started its diversification 79 to 74 million years ago. In fact, the Fabaceae have diversified during the early tertiary to become a ubiquitous part of the modern earth's biota, along with many other families belonging to the flowering plants.Herendeen, P. S., W. L. Crepet, and D. L. Dilcher. 1992. The fossil history of the Leguminosae: phylogenetic and biogeographic implications. Pages 303 – 316 in Advances in Legume Systematics, part 4, the fossil record (P. S. Herendeen and D .L. Dilcher, eds). Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, UK. The Fabaceae have an abundant and diverse

fossil A fossil (from Classical Latin , ) is any preserved remains, impression, or trace of any once-living thing from a past geological age. Examples include bones, shells, exoskeletons, stone imprints of animals or microbes, objects preserved ...

record, especially for the

Tertiary Tertiary ( ) is a widely used but obsolete term for the geologic period from 66 million to 2.6 million years ago. The period began with the demise of the non-avian dinosaurs in the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event, at the start ...

period. Fossils of flowers, fruit, leaves, wood and pollen from this period have been found in numerous locations.Crepet, W. L., and P. S. Herendeen. 1992. Papilionoid flowers from the early Eocene of south eastern North America. Pages 43–55 in Advances in Legume Systematics, part 4, the fossil record (P. S. Herendeen and D. L. Dilcher, eds.). Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, UK.Herendeen, P. S. 1992. The fossil history of Leguminosae from the Eocene of south eastern North America. Pages 85-160 in Advances in Legume Systematics, part 4, the fossil record (Herendeen, P. S., and D. L. Dilcher, eds.). Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, UK.Herendeen, P. S. 2001. The fossil record of the Leguminosae: recent advances. In Legumes Down Under: the Fourth International Legume conference, Abstracts, 34–35. Australian National University, Canberra, Australia.Herendeen, P. S., and S. Wing. 2001. Papilionoid legume fruits and leaves from the Palaeocene of north western Wyoming. Botany 2001 Abstracts, published by Botanical Society of America (http://www.botany2001.org/).Wing, S. L., F. Herrera, and C. Jaramillo. 2004. A Palaeocene flora from the Cerrajón Formation, Guajíra Peninsula, north eastern Colombia. Pages 146-147 in VII International Organization of Paleobotany Conference Abstracts (21–26 March). Museo Egidio Feruglio, Trelew, Argentina. The earliest fossils that can be definitively assigned to the Fabaceae appeared in the early Palaeocene (approximately 65 million years ago). Representatives of the 3 sub-families traditionally recognised as being members of the Fabaceae – Cesalpinioideae, Papilionoideae and Mimosoideaeas well as members of the large clades within these sub-familiessuch as the genistoideshave been found in periods later, starting between 55 and 50 million years ago. In fact, a wide variety of taxa representing the main lineages in the Fabaceae have been found in the fossil record dating from the middle to the late

Eocene The Eocene ( ) Epoch is a geological epoch that lasted from about 56 to 33.9 million years ago (mya). It is the second epoch of the Paleogene Period in the modern Cenozoic Era. The name ''Eocene'' comes from the Ancient Greek (''ēṓs'', ...

, suggesting that the majority of the modern Fabaceae groups were already present and that a broad diversification occurred during this period. Therefore, the Fabaceae started their diversification approximately 60 million years ago and the most important clades separated 50 million years ago.Bruneau, A., Lewis, G. P., Herendeen, P. S., Schrire, B., & Mercure, M. 2008b. Biogeographic patterns in early-diverging clades of the Leguminosae. Pp. 98-99, in Botany 2008. Botany without Borders. otanical Society of America, Abstracts./ref> The age of the main Cesalpinioideae clades have been estimated as between 56 and 34 million years and the basal group of the Mimosoideae as 44 ± 2.6 million years. The division between Mimosoideae and Faboideae is dated as occurring between 59 and 34 million years ago and the basal group of the Faboideae as 58.6 ± 0.2 million years ago. It has been possible to date the divergence of some of the groups within the Faboideae, even though diversification within each genus was relatively recent. For instance, '' Astragalus'' separated from the '' Oxytropis'' 16 to 12 million years ago. In addition, the separation of the aneuploid species of ''Neoastragalus'' started 4 million years ago. '' Inga,'' another genus of the Papilionoideae with approximately 350 species, seems to have diverged in the last 2 million years.Wojciechowski, M. F. 2003. Reconstructing the phylogeny of legumes (Leguminosae): An early 21st century perspective. Pp. 5-35, in Klitgaard, B. B. & Bruneau, A. (eds), Advances in Legume Systematics, Part 10, Higher Level Systematics. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.Wojciechowski, Martin F., Johanna Mahn, and Bruce Jones. 2006. Fabaceae. legumes. Version 14 June 2006
The Tree of Life Web Project
http://tolweb.org/ It has been suggested, based on fossil and phylogenetic evidence, that legumes originally evolved in arid and/or semi-arid regions along the

Tethys seaway The Tethys Ocean ( el, Τηθύς ''Tēthús''), also called the Tethys Sea or the Neo-Tethys, was a prehistoric ocean that covered most of the Earth during much of the Mesozoic Era and early Cenozoic Era, located between the ancient continents ...

during the

Palaeogene The Paleogene ( ; also spelled Palaeogene or Palæogene; informally Lower Tertiary or Early Tertiary) is a geologic period and system that spans 43 million years from the end of the Cretaceous Period million years ago ( Mya) to the beginning ...

Period. However, others contend that

(or even the

) cannot yet be ruled out as the origin of the family. The current hypothesis about the evolution of the genes needed for nodulation is that they were recruited from other pathways after a polyploidy event. Several different pathways have been implicated as donating duplicated genes to the pathways need for nodulation. The main donors to the pathway were the genes associated with the arbuscular mycorrhiza symbiosis genes, the pollen tube formation genes and the haemoglobin genes. One of the main genes shown to be shared between the arbuscular mycorrhiza pathway and the nodulation pathway is SYMRK and it is involved in the plant-bacterial recognition. The pollen tube growth is similar to the infection thread development in that infection threads grow in a polar manner that is similar to a pollen tubes polar growth towards the ovules. Both pathways include the same type of enzymes, pectin-degrading cell wall enzymes. The enzymes needed to reduce nitrogen, nitrogenases, require a substantial input of ATP but at the same time are sensitive to free oxygen. To meet the requirements of this paradoxical situation, the plants express a type of haemoglobin called leghaemoglobin that is believed to be recruited after a duplication event. These three genetic pathways are believed to be part of a gene duplication event then recruited to work in nodulation.

Phylogeny and taxonomy

Phylogeny

The

phylogeny A phylogenetic tree (also phylogeny or evolutionary tree Felsenstein J. (2004). ''Inferring Phylogenies'' Sinauer Associates: Sunderland, MA.) is a branching diagram or a tree showing the evolutionary relationships among various biological s ...

of the legumes has been the object of many studies by research groups from around the world. These studies have used morphology, DNA data (the chloroplast intron ''trnL'', the chloroplast

gene In biology, the word gene (from , ; "...Wilhelm Johannsen coined the word gene to describe the Mendelian units of heredity..." meaning ''generation'' or ''birth'' or ''gender'') can have several different meanings. The Mendelian gene is a b ...

s ''rbcL'' and ''matK'', or the ribosomal spacers ''ITS'') and cladistic analysis in order to investigate the relationships between the family's different lineages. Fabaceae is consistently recovered as monophyletic. The studies further confirmed that the traditional subfamilies Mimosoideae and Papilionoideae were each monophyletic but both were nested within the paraphyletic subfamily Caesalpinioideae. All the different approaches yielded similar results regarding the relationships between the family's main clades. Following extensive discussion in the legume phylogenetics community, the Legume Phylogeny Working Group reclassified Fabaceae into six subfamilies, which necessitated the segregation of four new subfamilies from Caesalpinioideae and merging Caesapinioideae ''sensu stricto'' with the former subfamily Mimosoideae. The exact branching order of the different subfamilies is still unresolved.

Taxonomy

The Fabaceae are placed in the order Fabales according to most taxonomic systems, including the APG III system. The family now includes six subfamilies: * Cercidoideae: 12 genera and ~335 species. Mainly tropical. '' Bauhinia'', '' Cercis''. * Detarioideae: 84 genera and ~760 species. Mainly tropical. '' Amherstia'', ''

Detarium ''Detarium'' is a plant genus of the family Fabaceae. It contains 3 species of tree in west African forests. The genus produces timber that may serve as a mahogany substitute. The fruit In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in ...

'', ''

Tamarindus Tamarind (''Tamarindus indica'') is a leguminous tree bearing edible fruit that is probably indigenous to tropical Africa. The genus ''Tamarindus'' is monotypic, meaning that it contains only this species. It belongs to the family Fabaceae. ...

''. * Duparquetioideae: 1 genus and 1 species. West and Central Africa. ''

Duparquetia ''Duparquetia orchidacea'' is a liana which is native to tropical west Africa. It is the only species in the subfamily Duparquetioideae. It is found in humid tropical forests in West and Central Africa. It is a basal member of the Fabaceae ...

''. * Dialioideae: 17 genera and ~85 species. Widespread throughout the tropics. '' Dialium''. * Caesalpinioideae: 148 genera and ~4400 species.

Pantropical A pantropical ("all tropics") distribution is one which covers tropical regions of both hemispheres. Examples of species include caecilians, modern sirenians and the plant genera ''Acacia'' and '' Bacopa''. ''Neotropical'' is a zoogeographic te ...

. '' Caesalpinia'', '' Senna'', '' Mimosa'', '' Acacia''. Includes the former subfamily Mimosoideae (80 genera and ~3200 species; mostly tropical and warm temperate Asia and America). * Faboideae (Papilionoideae): 503 genera and ~14,000 species.

Cosmopolitan Cosmopolitan may refer to: Food and drink * Cosmopolitan (cocktail), also known as a "Cosmo" History * Rootless cosmopolitan, a Soviet derogatory epithet during Joseph Stalin's anti-Semitic campaign of 1949–1953 Hotels and resorts * Cosmopoli ...

. '' Astragalus'', '' Lupinus'', '' Pisum''.

Ecology

Distribution and habitat

The Fabaceae have an essentially worldwide distribution, being found everywhere except Antarctica and the high Arctic. The trees are often found in tropical regions, while the herbaceous plants and shrubs are predominant outside the tropics.

Biological nitrogen fixation

Cross-section through root nodule of (Vicia spec

Biological nitrogen fixation (BNF, performed by the organisms called

diazotroph Diazotrophs are bacteria and archaea that fix gaseous nitrogen in the atmosphere into a more usable form such as ammonia. A diazotroph is a microorganism that is able to grow without external sources of fixed nitrogen. Examples of organisms tha ...

s) is a very old process that probably originated in the

Archean The Archean Eon ( , also spelled Archaean or Archæan) is the second of four geologic eons of Earth's history, representing the time from . The Archean was preceded by the Hadean Eon and followed by the Proterozoic. The Earth during the Arc ...

eon when the primitive atmosphere lacked

oxygen Oxygen is the chemical element with the symbol O and atomic number 8. It is a member of the chalcogen group in the periodic table, a highly reactive nonmetal, and an oxidizing agent that readily forms oxides with most elements ...

. It is only carried out by Euryarchaeota and just 6 of the more than 50

phyla Phyla, the plural of ''phylum'', may refer to: * Phylum, a biological taxon between Kingdom and Class * by analogy, in linguistics, a large division of possibly related languages, or a major language family which is not subordinate to another Phy ...

. Some of these lineages co-evolved together with the

s establishing the molecular basis of a mutually beneficial symbiotic relationship. BNF is carried out in nodules that are mainly located in the root cortex, although they are occasionally located in the stem as in ''

Sesbania rostrata ''Sesbania rostrata'' is a small semi-aquatic leguminous tree, in the genus ''Sesbania''. It forms a symbiotic relationship with Gram-negative rhizobia which leads to the formation of nitrogen fixing nodules on both stem and roots. It is mainly u ...

''. The

spermatophyte A spermatophyte (; ), also known as phanerogam (taxon Phanerogamae) or phaenogam (taxon Phaenogamae), is any plant that produces seeds, hence the alternative name seed plant. Spermatophytes are a subset of the embryophytes or land plants. They inc ...

s that co-evolved with actinorhizal diazotrophs ('' Frankia'') or with rhizobia to establish their symbiotic relationship belong to 11 families contained within the Rosidae clade (as established by the gene molecular phylogeny of ''rbcL'', a gene coding for part of the RuBisCO enzyme in the chloroplast). This grouping indicates that the predisposition for forming nodules probably only arose once in flowering plants and that it can be considered as an ancestral characteristic that has been conserved or lost in certain lineages. However, such a wide distribution of families and genera within this lineage indicates that nodulation had multiple origins. Of the 10 families within the Rosidae, 8 have nodules formed by actinomyces ( Betulaceae,

Casuarinaceae The Casuarinaceae are a family of dicotyledonous flowering plants placed in the order Fagales, consisting of four genera and 91 species of trees and shrubs native to eastern Africa, Australia, Southeast Asia, Malesia, Papuasia, and the ...

, Coriariaceae, Datiscaceae, Elaeagnaceae, Myricaceae, Rhamnaceae and Rosaceae), and the two remaining families, Ulmaceae and Fabaceae have nodules formed by rhizobia.Sprent, J. I. 2001. Nodulation in legumes. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, UK. The rhizobia and their hosts must be able to recognize each other for nodule formation to commence. Rhizobia are specific to particular host species although a rhizobia species may often infect more than one host species. This means that one plant species may be infected by more than one species of bacteria. For example, nodules in ''

Acacia senegal ''Senegalia senegal'' (also known as ''Acacia senegal'') is a small thorny deciduous tree from the genus ''Senegalia'', which is known by several common names, including gum acacia, gum arabic tree, Sudan gum and Sudan gum arabic. In parts of In ...

'' can contain seven species of rhizobia belonging to three different genera. The most distinctive characteristics that allow rhizobia to be distinguished apart are the rapidity of their growth and the type of root nodule that they form with their host. Root nodules can be classified as being either indeterminate, cylindrical and often branched, and determinate, spherical with prominent lenticels. Indeterminate nodules are characteristic of legumes from temperate climates, while determinate nodules are commonly found in species from tropical or subtropical climates. Nodule formation is common throughout the Fabaceae. It is found in the majority of its members that only form an association with rhizobia, which in turn form an exclusive symbiosis with the Fabaceae (with the exception of ''Parasponia'', the only genus of the 18 Ulmaceae genera that is capable of forming nodules). Nodule formation is present in all the Fabaceae sub-families, although it is less common in the Caesalpinioideae. All types of nodule formation are present in the subfamily Papilionoideae: indeterminate (with the meristem retained), determinate (without meristem) and the type included in ''Aeschynomene''. The latter two are thought to be the most modern and specialised type of nodule as they are only present in some lines of the subfamily Papilionoideae. Even though nodule formation is common in the two monophyletic subfamilies Papilionoideae and Mimosoideae they also contain species that do not form nodules. The presence or absence of nodule-forming species within the three sub-families indicates that nodule formation has arisen several times during the evolution of the Fabaceae and that this ability has been lost in some lineages. For example, within the genus ''Acacia'', a member of the Mimosoideae, ''A. pentagona'' does not form nodules, while other species of the same genus readily form nodules, as is the case for ''Acacia senegal'', which forms both rapidly and slow growing rhizobial nodules.

Chemical ecology

A large number of species within many genera of leguminous plants, e.g. '' Astragalus'', '' Coronilla'', ''

Hippocrepis ''Hippocrepis'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Fabaceae The Fabaceae or Leguminosae,Indigofera'', '' Lotus'', ''

Securigera The genus ''Securigera'' contains a number of plant species commonly referred to as crownvetch. It is a segregate of the genus ''Coronilla The genus ''Coronilla'' contains 8 species of flowering plants native Native may refer to: People ...

'' and '' Scorpiurus'', produce chemicals that derive from the compound 3-nitropropanoic acid (3-NPA, beta-nitropropionic acid). The free acid 3-NPA is an

irreversible inhibitor An enzyme inhibitor is a molecule that binds to an enzyme and blocks its activity. Enzymes are proteins that speed up chemical reactions necessary for life, in which substrate molecules are converted into products. An enzyme facilitates a s ...

of mitochondrial respiration, and thus the compound inhibits the tricarboxylic acid cycle. This inhibition caused by 3-NPA is especially toxic to nerve cells and represents a very general toxic mechanism suggesting a profound ecological importance due to the big number of species producing this compound and its derivatives. A second and closely related class of secondary metabolites that occur in many species of leguminous plants is defined by isoxazolin-5-one derivatives. These compounds occur in particular together with 3-NPA and related derivatives at the same time in the same species, as found in ''Astragalus canadensis'' and ''Astragalus collinus''. 3-NPA and isoxazlin-5-one derivatives also occur in many species of leaf beetles (see

defense in insects Insects have a wide variety of predators, including birds, reptiles, amphibians, mammals, carnivorous plants, and other arthropods. The great majority (80–99.99%) of individuals born do not survive to reproductive age, with perhaps 50% of this mor ...

Economic and cultural importance

Legumes are economically and culturally important plants due to their extraordinary diversity and abundance, the wide variety of edible vegetables they represent and due to the variety of uses they can be put to: in horticulture and agriculture, as a food, for the compounds they contain that have medicinal uses and for the oil and fats they contain that have a variety of uses.Allen, O. N., & E. K. Allen. 1981. The Leguminosae, A Source Book of Characteristics, Uses, and Nodulation. The University of Wisconsin Press, Madison, USA.Duke, J. A. 1992. Handbook of Legumes of Economic Importance. Plenum Press, New York, USA.Wojciechowski, M.F. 2006
Agriculturally & Economically Important Legumes.
Accessed 15 November 2008.

Food and forage

The history of legumes is tied in closely with that of human civilization, appearing early in

Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an are ...

, the

(the common bean, several varieties) and

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

(broad beans) by 6,000 BCE, where they became a staple, essential as a source of protein. Their ability to fix atmospheric nitrogen reduces

fertilizer A fertilizer (American English) or fertiliser (British English; see spelling differences) is any material of natural or synthetic origin that is applied to soil or to plant tissues to supply plant nutrients. Fertilizers may be distinct from ...

costs for farmers and gardeners who grow legumes, and means that legumes can be used in a

crop rotation Crop rotation is the practice of growing a series of different types of crops in the same area across a sequence of growing seasons. It reduces reliance on one set of nutrients, pest and weed pressure, and the probability of developing resistant ...

to replenish soil that has been depleted of

. Legume seeds and foliage have a comparatively higher

protein Proteins are large biomolecules and macromolecules that comprise one or more long chains of amino acid residues. Proteins perform a vast array of functions within organisms, including catalysing metabolic reactions, DNA replication, res ...

content than non-legume materials, due to the additional nitrogen that legumes receive through the process. Legumes are commonly used as natural fertilizers. Some legume species perform hydraulic lift, which makes them ideal for

intercropping Intercropping is a multiple cropping practice that involves growing two or more crops in proximity. In other words, intercropping is the cultivation of two or more crops simultaneously on the same field. The most common goal of intercropping is ...

. Farmed legumes can belong to numerous classes, including

forage Forage is a plant material (mainly plant leaves and stems) eaten by grazing livestock. Historically, the term ''forage'' has meant only plants eaten by the animals directly as pasture, crop residue, or immature cereal crops, but it is also use ...

, grain, blooms, pharmaceutical/industrial, fallow/green manure and timber species, with most commercially farmed species filling two or more roles simultaneously. There are of two broad types of forage legumes. Some, like alfalfa,

clover Clover or trefoil are common names for plants of the genus ''Trifolium'' (from Latin ''tres'' 'three' + ''folium'' 'leaf'), consisting of about 300 species of flowering plants in the legume or pea family Fabaceae originating in Europe. The genus ...

, vetch, and '' Arachis'', are sown in

pasture Pasture (from the Latin ''pastus'', past participle of ''pascere'', "to feed") is land used for grazing. Pasture lands in the narrow sense are enclosed tracts of farmland, grazed by domesticated livestock, such as horses, cattle, sheep, or sw ...

and grazed by livestock. Other forage legumes such as '' Leucaena'' or '' Albizia'' are woody shrub or tree species that are either broken down by livestock or regularly cut by humans to provide fodder. Grain legumes are cultivated for their

seed A seed is an embryonic plant enclosed in a protective outer covering, along with a food reserve. The formation of the seed is a part of the process of reproduction in seed plants, the spermatophytes, including the gymnosperm and angiosper ...

s, and are also called

pulses In medicine, a pulse represents the tactile arterial palpation of the cardiac cycle (heartbeat) by trained fingertips. The pulse may be palpated in any place that allows an artery to be compressed near the surface of the body, such as at the nec ...

. The seeds are used for human and animal consumption or for the production of oils for industrial uses. Grain legumes include both herbaceous plants like beans,

lentil The lentil (''Lens culinaris'' or ''Lens esculenta'') is an edible legume. It is an annual plant known for its lens-shaped seeds. It is about tall, and the seeds grow in pods, usually with two seeds in each. As a food crop, the largest p ...

s, lupins,

s and

s, and trees such as

carob The carob ( ; ''Ceratonia siliqua'') is a flowering evergreen tree or shrub in the Caesalpinioideae sub-family of the legume family, Fabaceae. It is widely cultivated for its edible fruit pods, and as an ornamental tree in gardens and lands ...

, mesquite and

tamarind Tamarind (''Tamarindus indica'') is a leguminous tree bearing edible fruit that is probably indigenous to tropical Africa. The genus ''Tamarindus'' is monotypic, meaning that it contains only this species. It belongs to the family Fabacea ...

. '' Lathyrus tuberosus'', once extensively cultivated in Europe, forms tubers used for human consumption. Bloom legume species include species such as lupin, which are farmed commercially for their blooms, and thus are popular in gardens worldwide. ''

Laburnum ''Laburnum'', sometimes called golden chain or golden rain, is a genus of two species of small trees in the subfamily Faboideae of the pea family Fabaceae. The species are ''Laburnum anagyroides''—common laburnum and ''Laburnum alpinum''� ...

'', ''

'', '' Gleditsia'' (honey locust), '' Acacia'', '' Mimosa'', and '' Delonix'' are ornamental trees and shrubs. Industrial farmed legumes include '' Indigofera'', cultivated for the production of

indigo Indigo is a deep color close to the color wheel blue (a primary color in the RGB color space), as well as to some variants of ultramarine, based on the ancient dye of the same name. The word "indigo" comes from the Latin word ''indicum'', ...

, '' Acacia'', for gum arabic, and '' Derris'', for the insecticide action of rotenone, a compound it produces. Fallow or green manure legume species are cultivated to be tilled back into the soil to exploit the high nitrogen levels found in most legumes. Numerous legumes are farmed for this purpose, including '' Leucaena'', ''

Cyamopsis ''Cyamopsis'' is a genus of the family Fabaceae. Its species are distributed across Africa, Asia and the Pacific The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the n ...

'' and ''

Sesbania ''Sesbania'' is a genus of flowering plants in the pea family, Fabaceae, and the only genus found in tribe Sesbanieae. Riverhemp is a common name for plants in this genus. Notable species include the rattlebox ('' Sesbania punicea''), spiny sesb ...

''. Various legume species are farmed for timber production worldwide, including numerous '' Acacia'' species, '' Dalbergia'' species, and ''

Castanospermum australe ''Castanospermum australe'' (Moreton Bay chestnut or blackbean), the only species in the genus ''Castanospermum'', is a flowering plant in the family Fabaceae, native to the east coast of Australia in Queensland and New South Wales, and to the ...

''. Melliferous plants offer nectar to

bee Bees are winged insects closely related to wasps and ants, known for their roles in pollination and, in the case of the best-known bee species, the western honey bee, for producing honey. Bees are a monophyletic lineage within the superfami ...

s and other insects to encourage them to carry pollen from the

s of one plant to others thereby ensuring pollination. Many Fabaceae species are important sources of pollen and nectar for bees, including for honey production in the beekeeping industry. Example Fabaceae such as alfalfa, and various clovers including

white clover ''Trifolium repens'', the white clover, is a herbaceous perennial plant in the bean family Fabaceae (otherwise known as Leguminosae). It is native to Europe, including the British Isles,Clapham, A.R., Tutin, T.G. and Warburg., E.F. 1968. ''Excursi ...

and sweet clover, are important sources of nectar and honey for the Western honey bee.

Industrial uses

Natural gums

Natural gum Natural gums are polysaccharides of natural origin, capable of causing a large increase in a solution's viscosity, even at small concentrations. They are mostly botanical gums, found in the woody elements of plants or in seed coatings. Human ...

s are vegetable exudates that are released as the result of damage to the plant such as that resulting from the attack of an insect or a natural or artificial cut. These exudates contain heterogeneous polysaccharides formed of different sugars and usually containing uronic acids. They form viscous colloidal solutions. There are different species that produce gums. The most important of these species belong to the Fabaceae. They are widely used in the pharmaceutical, cosmetic, food, and textile sectors. They also have interesting therapeutic properties; for example gum arabic is antitussive and anti-inflammatory. The most well known gums are tragacanth (''Astragalus gummifer''), gum arabic (''

'') and guar gum (''

Cyamopsis tetragonoloba The guar or cluster bean, with the botanical name ''Cyamopsis tetragonoloba'', is an annual legume and the source of guar gum. It is also known as gavar, gawar, or guvar bean. The origin of ''Cyamopsis tetragonoloba'' is unknown, since it has ...

'').Kuklinski, C. 2000. Farmacognosia : estudio de las drogas y sustancias medicamentosas de origen natural. Ediciones Omega, Barcelona.

Dyes

Several species of Fabaceae are used to produce dyes. The heartwood of logwood, ''

Haematoxylon campechianum ''Haematoxylum campechianum'' (blackwood, bloodwood tree, bluewood, campeachy tree, campeachy wood, campeche logwood, campeche wood, Jamaica wood, logwood or logwood tree) is a species of flowering tree in the legume family, Fabaceae, that is ...

'', is used to produce red and purple dyes. The histological stain called haematoxylin is produced from this species. The wood of the Brazilwood tree (''

Caesalpinia echinata ''Paubrasilia echinata'' is a species of flowering plant in the legume family, Fabaceae, that is endemic to the Atlantic Forest of Brazil. It is a Brazilian timber tree commonly known as Pernambuco wood or brazilwood ( pt, pau-de-pernambuco, ...

'') is also used to produce a red or purple dye. The Madras thorn (''

Pithecellobium dulce ''Pithecellobium dulce'', commonly known as Manila tamarind, Madras thorn, monkeypod tree or camachile, is a species of flowering plant in the pea family, Fabaceae, that is native to the Pacific Coast and adjacent highlands of Mexico, Central A ...

'') has reddish fruit that are used to produce a yellow dye.Marquez, A. C., Lara, O.F., Esquivel, R. B. & Mata, E. R. 1999. Composición, usos y actividad biológica: Plantas medicinales de México II. UNAM. First edition. México, D.F. Indigo dye is extracted from the indigo plant '' Indigofera tinctoria'' that is native to Asia. In Central and South America dyes are produced from two species in the same genus: indigo and Maya blue from ''

Indigofera suffruticosa ''Indigofera suffruticosa'', commonly known as Guatemalan indigo, small-leaved indigo (Sierra Leone), West Indian indigo, wild indigo, and anil, is a flowering plant in the pea family, Fabaceae. ''Anil'' is native to the subtropical and tropical ...

'' and Natal indigo from ''

Indigofera arrecta ''Indigofera arrecta'', variously called the Bengal, Java, or Natal indigo, is a species of flowering plant in the family Fabaceae. It is native to SubSaharan Africa, the Arabian Peninsula, and Madagascar, and has been introduced to the Indian Su ...

''. Yellow dyes are extracted from '' Butea monosperma'', commonly called flame of the forest and from dyer's greenweed, (''

Genista tinctoria ''Genista tinctoria'', the dyer's greenweed or dyer's broom, is a species of flowering plant in the family Fabaceae. Its other common names include dyer's whin, waxen woad and waxen wood. The Latin specific epithet ''tinctoria'' means "used as a ...

'').

Ornamentals

Legumes have been used as ornamental plants throughout the world for many centuries. Their vast diversity of heights, shapes, foliage and flower colour means that this family is commonly used in the design and planting of everything from small gardens to large parks. The following is a list of the main ornamental legume species, listed by subfamily. * Subfamily Caesalpinioideae: ''

Bauhinia forficata ''Bauhinia forficata'', commonly known as Brazilian orchid tree, pata-de-vaca,, pezuña de vaca is a species of flowering tree in the pea family, Fabaceae, that is native to Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay and Peru , image_flag = F ...

'', '' Caesalpinia gilliesii'', ''

Caesalpinia spinosa ''Tara spinosa'', commonly known as ''tara'' (Quechua), also known as Peruvian carob or spiny holdback, is a small leguminous tree or thorny shrub native to Peru. ''T. spinosa'' is cultivated as a source of tannins based on a galloylated quinic ...

'', ''

'', '' Cercis siliquastrum'', ''

Gleditsia triacanthos The honey locust (''Gleditsia triacanthos''), also known as the thorny locust or thorny honeylocust, is a deciduous tree in the family Fabaceae, native to central North America where it is mostly found in the moist soil of river valleys. Honey ...

'', '' Gymnocladus dioica'', ''

Parkinsonia aculeata ''Parkinsonia aculeata'' is a species of perennial flowering tree in the pea family, Fabaceae. Common names include palo verde, Mexican palo verde, Parkinsonia, Jerusalem thorn, jelly bean tree, palo de rayo, and retama. Etymology The genus name ...

'', ''

Senna multiglandulosa ''Senna multiglandulosa'' is a species of flowering plant in the legume family known by several common names, including glandular senna, downy senna, and buttercup bush. It is native to Mexico, Guatemala, and western parts of South America, but ...

''.Macaya J. 1999
Leguminosas arbóreas y arbustivas cultivadas en Chile.
Chloris Chilensis Año 2. Nº1. * Subfamily Mimosoideae: '' Acacia caven'', ''

Acacia cultriformis ''Acacia cultriformis'', known as the knife-leaf wattle, dogtooth wattle, half-moon wattle or golden-glow wattle, is a perennial tree or shrub of the genus ''Acacia'' native to Australia. It is widely cultivated, and has been found to have natu ...

'', '' Acacia dealbata'', ''

Acacia karroo ''Vachellia karroo'', commonly known as the sweet thorn, common acacia, Karoo thorn, Cape gum or cockspur thorn, is a species of ''Vachellia'', native to southern Africa from southern Angola east to Mozambique, and south to South Africa. It is ...

'', ''

Acacia longifolia ''Acacia longifolia'' is a species of ''Acacia'' native to southeastern Australia, from the extreme southeast of Queensland, eastern New South Wales, eastern and southern Victoria, and southeastern South Australia. Common names for it include lo ...

'', ''

Acacia melanoxylon ''Acacia melanoxylon'', commonly known as the Australian blackwood, is an ''Acacia'' species native in South eastern Australia. The species is also known as Blackwood, hickory, mudgerabah, Tasmanian blackwood, or blackwood acacia. The tree belo ...

'', ''

Acacia paradoxa ''Acacia paradoxa'' is a plant in the family Fabaceae. Its common names include kangaroo acacia, kangaroo thorn, prickly wattle, hedge wattle and paradox acacia. Description The large shrub or tree up to tall and has a similar width, it has ...

'', ''

Acacia retinodes ''Acacia retinodes'' is an evergreen shrub that is native to South Australia, Victoria and Tasmania. Short racemes of yellow flowers are produced periodically throughout the year.

'', ''

Acacia saligna ''Acacia saligna'', commonly known by various names including coojong, golden wreath wattle, orange wattle, blue-leafed wattle, Western Australian golden wattle, and, in Africa, Port Jackson willow, is a small tree in the family Fabaceae. Nativ ...

'', ''

Acacia verticillata ''Acacia verticillata'' (prickly Moses; prickly-leaved wattle; star-leaved acacia; prickly mimosa; whorl-leaved acacia) is a perennial shrub to small tree native to south eastern Australia. Description The shrub or tree can grow to a maximum ...

'', ''

Acacia visco ''Parasenegalia visco'' is a perennial tree found at higher elevations in northern Argentina, Bolivia, Chile and Peru. It has also been introduced to Africa. Common names for it include arca, visco, viscote, viscote blanco and viscote negro. It ...

'', ''

Albizzia julibrissin ''Albizia julibrissin'', the Persian silk tree, pink silk tree, or mimosa tree, is a species of tree in the family Fabaceae, native to southwestern Asia and eastern Asia. The genus is named after the Italian nobleman Filippo degli Albizzi, who i ...

'', ''

Calliandra tweediei ''Calliandra tweediei'' is a species of flowering plants of the genus '' Calliandra'' in the family Fabaceae. The plant is native to the Atlantic Forest ecoregion in southeastern Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Rep ...

'', ''

Paraserianthes lophantha ''Paraserianthes lophantha'' (syn. ''Albizia lophantha''), the Cape Leeuwin wattle, Bicol wattle, Cape wattle, crested wattle or plume albizia, is a fast-growing tree with creamy-yellow, bottlebrush like flowers. It is a small tree (uppermost hei ...

'', '' Prosopis chilensis''. * Subfamily Faboideae: ''

Clianthus puniceus ''Clianthus puniceus'', common name kaka beak (''Kōwhai Ngutu-kākā'' in Māori), is a species of flowering plant in the genus '' Clianthus'' of the legume family Fabaceae, native to New Zealand's North Island. Description ''Clianthus puni ...

'', '' Cytisus scoparius'', ''

Erythrina crista-galli ''Erythrina crista-galli'', often known as the cockspur coral tree, is a flowering tree in the family Fabaceae, native to Argentina, Uruguay, southern Brazil and Paraguay. It is widely planted as a street or garden tree in other countries, no ...

'', ''

Erythrina falcata ''Erythrina falcata'', commonly known as the Brazilian coral tree, is a timber tree native to Atlantic Forest vegetation in Brazil, Paraguay and Argentina. This plant is also used as a medicinal plant and ornamental plant which is attractive to ...

'',''

Laburnum anagyroides ''Laburnum anagyroides'' ( syn. ''Cytisus laburnum''), the common laburnum, golden chain or golden rain, is a species of flowering plant in the subfamily Faboideae, and genus '' Laburnum''. '' Laburnum alpinum'' is closely related. It is native ...

'', ''

Lotus peliorhynchus Lotus may refer to: Plants *Lotus (plant), various botanical taxa commonly known as lotus, particularly: ** ''Lotus'' (genus), a genus of terrestrial plants in the family Fabaceae **Lotus flower, a symbolically important aquatic Asian plant also ...

'', '' Lupinus arboreus'', ''

Lupinus polyphyllus ''Lupinus polyphyllus'', the large-leaved lupine, big-leaved lupine, many-leaved lupine, blue-pod lupine, or, primarily in cultivation, garden lupin, is a species of lupine (lupin) native to western North America from southern Alaska and British ...

'', ''

Otholobium glandulosum ''Otholobium'' is a genus of flowering plants in the pea family with over 50 named species, but several also remain undescribed sofar. Species may be herbaceous perennials, subshrubs, shrubs or small trees. The alternately set leaves are accomp ...

'','' Retama monosperma'', '' Robinia hispida'', ''

Robinia luxurians ''Robinia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Fabaceae, tribe Robinieae, native to North America. Commonly known as locusts, they are deciduous trees and shrubs growing tall. The leaves are pinnate with 7–21 oval leaflets. The flowe ...

'', ''

'', '' Sophora japonica'', ''

Sophora macnabiana ''Sophora'' is a genus of about 45 species of small trees and shrubs in the pea family Fabaceae. The species have a pantropical distribution. The generic name is derived from ''sophera'', an Arabic name for a pea-flowered tree. The genus formerl ...

'',''

Sophora macrocarpa ''Sophora macrocarpa'' is a species of flowering tree or shrub of the genus ''Sophora'' of the family Fabaceae. It is commonly known as mayú or mayo, and is endemic to central and southern continental Chile. Description ''Sophora macrocarpa'' i ...

'', '' Spartium junceum'', ''

Teline monspessulana ''Genista monspessulana'', commonly known as French broom, Montpellier broom, or Cape broom (Australia), is a woody leguminous perennial shrub. The yellow-flowering bush is native to the Mediterranean region, and while it may still be commonly so ...

'', ''

Tipuana tipu ''Tipuana tipu'', also known as tipa, rosewood and pride of Bolivia, is a South American tree. It is the only member of the genus ''Tipuana''. It was recently assigned to the informal monophyletic ''Pterocarpus'' clade within the Dalbergieae ...

'', '' Wisteria sinensis''.

Emblematic Fabaceae

* The Cockspur Coral Tree (''

''), is the National Flower of Argentina and Uruguay.Ministerio de Educación de la Nación. Subsecretaría de Coordinación Administrativa
Día de la Flor Nacional "El Ceibo"
. Efemérides Culturales Argentinas. Consulted 3 March 2010. * The Elephant ear tree ('' Enterolobium cyclocarpum'') is the national tree of Costa Rica, by Executive Order of 31 August 1959.Gilbert Vargas Ulate. 1997. Geografía turística de Costa Rica. EUNED, 180 p. , 9789977649009. * The Brazilwood tree (''

'') has been the national tree of

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

since 1978."Lei Nº 6.607, de 7 de dezembro de 1978. O Presidente da República, faço saber que o Congresso Nacional decreta e eu sanciono a seguinte Lei: Art. 1º- É declarada Árvore Nacional a leguminosa denominada Pau-Brasil (''Caesalpinia echinata'', Lam), cuja festa será comemorada, anualmente, quando o Ministério da Educação e Cultura promoverá campanha elucidativa sobre a relevância daquela espécie vegetal na História do Brasil." * The Golden wattle '' Acacia pycnantha'' is

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...

’s national flower. * The Hong Kong Orchid tree '' Bauhinia blakeana'' is the national flower of

Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a List of cities in China, city and Special administrative regions of China, special ...

Image gallery

File:MG 7005.jpg, '' Acacia baileyana'' (Wattle) File:Starr 050419-0368 Alysicarpus vaginalis.jpg, Loments of ''

Alysicarpus ''Alysicarpus'' is a genus of flowering plants in the legume family, Fabaceae. It is distributed in tropical and subtropical regionsChavan, S., et al. (2012)''Alysicarpus sanjappae'' (Leguminosae: Papilionoideae), a new species from the Western G ...

vaginalis'' File:CalliandraEmarginata.JPG, '' Calliandra emarginata'' File:Cassia_leptophylla_tree.jpg, ''

Cassia leptophylla ''Cassia leptophylla'' is a tropical tree species in the genus '' Cassia'', which is indigenous to Brazil. It is named gold medallion tree and has yellow flowers that bloom intermittently throughout the year, spawning seedpods that are rectangu ...

'' tree File:Desmodium gangeticum W2 IMG 2776.jpg, '' Desmodium gangeticum'' File:Sickle Bush (Dichrostachys cinerea) in Hyderabad, AP W2 IMG 9903.jpg, '' Dichrostachys cinerea'' Sickle Bush File:Royal_Ponciana.jpg, '' Delonix regia'' tree File:Indigofera-gerardiana.JPG, ''

Indigofera gerardiana ''Indigofera'' is a large genus of over 750 species of flowering plants belonging to the pea family Fabaceae. They are widely distributed throughout the tropical and subtropical regions of the world. Description Species of ''Indigofera'' are mos ...

'' File:Lathyrus odoratus 5 ies.jpg, Tendrils of '' Lathyrus odoratus'' (Sweet pea) File:Arboreus infl.jpg, Inflorescence of '' Lupinus arboreus'' (Yellow bush lupin) File:Blauwschokker Kapucijner rijserwt Pisum sativum.jpg, '' Pisum sativum'' (Peas); note the leaf-like stipules File:Smithia conferta W IMG 2191.jpg, ''

Smithia conferta ''Smithia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the legume family, Fabaceae. It belongs to the subfamily Faboideae, and was recently assigned to the informal monophyletic In cladistics for a group of organisms, monophyly is the condition of ...

'' File:Trifolium repens in Kullu distt W IMG 6655.jpg, '' Trifolium repens'' in Kullu District of

Himachal Pradesh Himachal Pradesh (; ; "Snow-laden Mountain Province") is a state in the northern part of India. Situated in the Western Himalayas, it is one of the thirteen mountain states and is characterized by an extreme landscape featuring several pea ...

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area, the List of countries and dependencies by population, second-most populous ...

. File:Vicia cassubica W.jpg, ''

Kashubian vetch ''Vicia cassubica'', called Kashubian vetch and Danzig vetch, is a species of flowering plant in the genus ''Vicia'', native to most of Europe, Turkey, the Levant, the Caucasus and Iran. Found in thermophilous oak forests, it also does well in ...

'' – Kashubia File:Zornia gibbosa W IMG 1666.jpg, ''

Zornia gibbosa ''Zornia'' is a cosmopolitan genus of herbs from the legume family Fabaceae. It was recently assigned to the informal monophyletic In cladistics for a group of organisms, monophyly is the condition of being a clade—that is, a group of t ...

'' File:Cytisus scoparius2.jpg, '' Cytisus scoparius'' (Scotch broom) File:Senna_pendula6.jpg, ''

Senna pendula ''Senna pendula'', also known as Easter Cassia, Christmas Senna, winter Senna, climbing Cassia, golden shower, pendant Senna and valamuerto, is a plant of the Fabaceae family with a shrub habit that is native to South America. It used in various ...

'' (Easter cassia) File:Fabaceae Stipulate Lotus Hosackia stipularis.jpg, ''

Hosackia stipularis ''Hosackia stipularis'', synonym ''Lotus stipularis'', is a species of legume endemic to California. It is known by the common name balsam bird's-foot trefoil. It is found in most of the northern and central coastal and inland mountain ranges an ...

'' (Stipulate Lotus) File:Fabaceae lupinus nanus sky lupine.jpg, ''

Lupinus manus ''Lupinus'', commonly known as lupin, lupine, or regionally bluebonnet etc., is a genus of plants in the legume family Fabaceae. The genus includes over 199 species, with centers of diversity in North and South America. Smaller centers occur ...

'' (Sky Lupine) File:Starr_071024-0313_Vigna_caracalla.jpg, ''

Vigna caracalla ''Cochliasanthus caracalla'' is a leguminous flowering plant in the family Fabaceae that originates in tropical South America and Central America. The species is named ''caracalla'', a corruption of the Portuguese caracol, meaning snail. T ...

'' (snail vine) flowers File:Fabaceae Arroyo lupine succulent lupine lupinus succulentus.jpg, ''

Lupinus succulentus ''Lupinus succulentus'' is a species of lupine known by the common names hollowleaf annual lupine, arroyo lupine, and succulent lupine. It is native to California, where it is common throughout much of the state, and adjacent sections of Arizo ...

'' (Arroyo Lupine Succulent) File:Fabaceae harlequin lupine lupinus stiversii.jpg, ''

Lupinus stiversii ''Lupinus stiversii'' is a species of lupine known by the common names harlequin annual lupine and harlequin lupine. The plant was named for Army physician Dr. Charles Austin Stivers, who first collected it in 1862 near Yosemite. Distribution ' ...

'' (Harlequin Lupine) File:Virgilia_tree_Keurboom_-_Cape_Town_2.JPG, ''

Virgilia oroboides ''Virgilia'' is a genus of Southern African trees in the family Fabaceae that is known for its very fast growth (4.5m in 2 years) and a tendency to fall over as it matures (15 years or so). The common name in South Africa (in Afrikaans) is keurb ...

'' (Cape lilac) mauve flowers

References

External links

Fabaceae
at th

LegumeWeb Database
at th
''International Legume Database & Information Service (ILDIS)''
{{Authority control Nitrogen cycle Extant Paleocene first appearances Rosid families Soil improvers