''Helicotropis'' is a small genus of

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (). The term angiosperm is derived from the Ancient Greek, Greek words (; 'container, vessel') and (; 'seed'), meaning that the seeds are enclosed with ...

s in the

legume Legumes are plants in the pea family Fabaceae (or Leguminosae), or the fruit or seeds of such plants. When used as a dry grain for human consumption, the seeds are also called pulses. Legumes are grown agriculturally, primarily for human consum ...

family,

Fabaceae Fabaceae () or Leguminosae,International Code of Nomen ...

. 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 Papilionoideae, or Papilionaceae when this group of plants is treated as a family. This subfamily is widely ...

. It includes three species of perennial climbing vines native to the tropical Americas, ranging from southern Mexico to northeastern Argentina. Species in this genus were formerly considered to belong to the genus ''

Vigna ''Vigna'' is a genus of plants in the legume family, Fabaceae, with a pantropical distribution.Aitawade, M. M., et al. (2012)Section ''Ceratotropis'' of subgenus ''Ceratotropis'' of ''Vigna'' (Leguminosae–Papilionoideae) in India with a new ...

''. *'' Helicotropis hookeri'' (Verdc.) A.Delgado – southern Brazil, northeastern Argentina, and Uruguay *'' Helicotropis linearis'' (Kunth) A.Delgado – central Mexico to Paraguay and southern Brazil *'' Helicotropis spectabilis'' (Standl.) A. Delgado – southern Mexico to Costa Rica

References

Phaseoleae Fabaceae genera Flora of the Neotropical realm {{Phaseoleae-stub