Vigna luteola (Jacq.) Benth.
Hairypod cowpea, Yellow Vigna
Fabaceae (Pea Family)
Synonym(s): Vigna nilotica, Vigna repens
USDA Symbol: VILU3
Yellow Vigna is a member of the pea family (Fabaceae), which includes trees, shrubs, herbs, and vines with compound or occasionally simple leaves and flowers usually in clusters. Taken as a single family, there are about 640 genera and 17,000 species. This enormous family, also known as the bean or legume family, includes many economically important genera: Peas belong to the genus Pisium; beans to Phaseolus; soybeans to Glycine; peanuts to Arachis; lentils to Lens; and chickpeas (garbanzos) to Cicer. Alfalfa (Medicago sativa) and clover species (Trifolium) provide forage for domestic livestock, but many other species are poisonous range weeds. Exotic hardwoods and gum arabic are provided by tropical trees belonging to this family, and numerous members are cultivated as handsome ornamentals. The traditional family name, Leguminosae, reflects some of the family’s importance (in Latin it refers to “plants with seedpods,” and in French légume means “vegetable”). The family is sometimes split into three smaller families, each distinguished by one of the three flower types: the Fabaceae, Mimosaceae, and Caesalpiniaceae. The fruit, an important feature, is similar in all three.
From the Image Gallery
Bloom InformationBloom Color: Yellow
National Wetland Indicator Status
Herbarium Specimen(s)NPSOT 1060 Collected Oct 1, 1995 in Comal County by Mary Beth White
Wildflower Center Seed BankLBJWC-1194 Collected 2008-08-11 in Gaveston County by Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
Additional resourcesUSDA: Find Vigna luteola in USDA Plants
FNA: Find Vigna luteola in the Flora of North America (if available)
Google: Search Google for Vigna luteola
MetadataRecord Modified: 2014-11-12
Research By: TWC Staff