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Vigna trilobata
Also called Jungle mat bean, Three-lobe-leaved cowpea, Jungli Bean, Three Lobe Leaf Cowpea
Vigna trilobata, the three-lobe-leaf cowpea or jungle mat bean, is a regenerating annual (though occasionally perennial) herb found in India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Burma, Afghanistan and the Malay archipelago.
Vigna trilobata is mostly found on well-drained, alkaline, dark, cracking clay soils, but also on sandy and loamy soils of similar reaction and can rarely be found on poorly drained soils. One of its major features is its strong resistance to drought, though the seeds shatter in frost. It is also moderately tolerant of salinity. Under well-watered conditions, flowering and seed set is continuous but sparse. However, under moisture stress, plants respond with more dense flowering, far greater seed production and a reduction in vegetative growth. The annual rainfall at areas where Vigna trilobata grows ranges from 700–900 mm (28–35 in). The species is native to a largely tropical area extending from 24ºN in India to 9ºS in Indonesia, and from near sea level to greater than 700 m (2,300 ft) above sea level, mostly equating to average annual temperatures around 25–27 °C (77–81 °F). It is tolerant of regular or constant heavy grazing, but not of infrequent heavy grazing when a bulk of foliage is rapidly removed.
Vigna trilobata is cultivated in India, Pakistan, and Sudan for short-term pasturage. It is valued highly as it is very tolerant of grazing and is very palatable, even being a human food alternative. However, it tends to have a very low yield.
Moth bean · Adzuki bean · Hairypod cowpea · Notched cowpea · Black gram · Oahu cowpea · Creeping Vigna · Mung bean · Vigna sahyadriana · Bambarra groundnut · Rice bean · Catjang
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Vigna trilobata by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts are shared under the same licence.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
