Canavalia
Canavalia gladiata
jackbean
sword bean, sword jackbean
twining, trailing, prostrate, or erect, glabrous, glabrate, strigulose, or glabrescent.
alternate, odd-pinnate;
stipules present, caducous, deltate and small or obsolete;
petiolate;
stipels deciduous;
leaflets 3, blade margins entire, surfaces strigose, glabrate, or glabrous.
petiole 5.8–8 cm;
petiolules 5–7.5 mm, sparsely pubescent, hairs 0.3–0.6 mm;
leaflet blades ovate-elliptic or ovate, 70–200 × 50–90 mm, base cuneate, apex acuminate, surfaces glabrate.
to 45 cm;
bracteoles 0.5–1 × 0.7–1.4 mm, apex obtuse.
8–50-flowered, axillary, panicles;
bracts present, caducous;
axis retrorsely pubescent basally, antrorsely pubescent apically;
bracteoles present, calycine.
2–2.2 mm, glabrous or strigillose.
papilionaceous;
calyx campanulate, 2-lipped, lobes 5, abaxial lip with 3 short lobes, adaxial lip with 2 massive connate lobes;
corolla lavender, pink-purple, purple and white (bicolored), white, blue-violet, or reddish purple [pink-white], 20–35 mm, glabrous;
stamens 10, monadelphous;
anthers basifixed, dehiscing apically, relatively small.
calyx 11–16 mm;
central lobe of abaxial lip equaling obtuse lateral lobes;
corolla bicolored (purple and white) or white, 25–35 mm.
legumes, stipitate, straight or ± falcate, ± compressed, sometimes turgid, oblong or narrowly oblong [linear], 6–40 cm, well exceeding calyx, ventral margin 3–5-ribbed, adaxial (upper) margins 3-costate, dehiscent, strigose to glabrate.
slightly compressed, narrowly oblong, 20–40 × 2.5–5 cm.
(1–)4–15, oblong to elliptic in silhouette;
hilum lateral.
6–9, usually red to red-brown, rarely white, moderately compressed, oblong, to 2–3.5 × 1.5–2 cm;
hilum 1/2+ length of seed.
= 11.
= 22.
Canavalia
Canavalia gladiata
Species ca. 60 (4 in the flora).
Some Canavalia species are grown for cover crops, green manures, forage, and human consumption (G. P. Lewis et al. 2005). Coastal species produce drift-seeds.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
1. Leaflet blades suborbiculate, elliptic, or oblong, apices emarginate or obtuse; legumes turgid to moderately compressed; seeds marbled, red to brown; hilum to 1/2 length of seed; coastal habitats. | C. rosea |
1. Leaflet blades ovate to ovate-elliptic, apices obtuse, acute, subacute, subacuminate, or acuminate; legumes slightly compressed; seeds usually not marbled (sometimes darkly so in C. brasiliensis), olive, brown, red, red-brown, white, or off-white; hilum shorter to longer than 1/2 length of seed; disturbed areas. | → 2 |
2. Leaflet apices acuminate; calyces with central lobe of abaxial lip equaling obtuse lateral lobes; seeds usually red to red-brown, rarely white. | C. gladiata |
2. Leaflet apices obtuse, subacute, or emarginate; calyces with central lobe of abaxial lip exceeding ± acute lateral lobes; seeds white, off-white, olive, brown, or red. | → 3 |
3. Stems twining or prostrate; petiolule hairs 0.5–0.9 mm; legumes 6–20 × 2–3 cm; seeds olive, brown, or red. | C. brasiliensis |
3. Stems twining or erect; petiolule hairs 0.3 mm; legumes 15–35 × 3–3.5 cm; seeds white or off-white. | C. ensiformis |
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