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Vigna unguiculata ssp. sesquipedalis

Authority	(L.) Walp. [(L.) Verdc.]
Family	Magnoliopsida:Rosidae:Fabales:Leguminosae
Synonyms	Vigna sesquipedalis (L.) Fruw., Vigna sinensis (L.) Hassk. ssp. sesquipedalis (L.)
Common names	asparagus bean, pole sitao, vegetable cowpea, yard long bean
Editor
Ecocrop code	10834

Notes
BRIEF DESCRIPTION A dwarf or climbing, herbaceous legume. Climbing forms may reach a length of up to 2-4 m. Flowers are yellow or violet and pods 30-100 cm long and more or less inflated and flabby when young. USES Immature pods and seeds are used as a green boiled vegetable. Seeds can be canned, frozen, and dehydrated and are used as a pulse, ground as a meal, or roasted and used as a coffee substitute. The beans are rich in vitamin A, protein, carbohydrates, lysine, and tryptophan. Leaves are used as a pod herb. Green plants are used as fodder or as green manure. GROWING PERIOD Annual. Green pods from early-maturing cultivars may be harvested 50-70 days from sowing, and long-duration cultivars may take 100-120 days to produce pods. Seeds are likely to mature in 60-150 days. COMMON NAMES Asparagus bean, Pea bean, Yard bean, Banor, Bodi bean, Boucouson, Cheong dau-kok, Ch`eung kong tau, Dolico gigante, Dolique asperge, Dolique de Cuba, Dolique de Chine, Dolique geant, Dau dua, Dau giai ao, Fagiolo asparagio, Habichuela China, Hamtak, Haricot kilometre, Increase pea, Judia asparaga, Jurokusasage, Kachang belut, Kachang panjang, Kachang perut ayam, Kacang belut, Long bean, Polon-me, Rounceval pea, Sitao, Six weeks bean, Snake bean, Sandaek troeung, Too-afuk yaou, Tua kok, Tua fak yaow, Tua phnom, Yardlong bean, String bean, Vegetable cowpea, Frijol de ojo negro. FURTHER INF Scientific synonyms: V. sesquipedalis, V. sinensis ssp. sesquipedalis, Dolichos sesquipedalis. Asparagus bean is thought to have originated in southern or southeasten Asia, possibly from southern China. It can in the tropics be grown at altitudes up to 700-1000 m, and it is suited for regions with high humidity, though heavy rainfall may damage emerging or young plants and reduce flowering. Average yields are variable 1.5-8 t/ha of fresh pods or 400-750 kg/ha of dried seeds. Yields may, however, be up to 15-30 t/ha and under greenhouse cultivation the crop as produced up to 8 kg/m˝.
Sources
SOURCES (Vigna unguiculata subsp. sesquipedalis) Tindall H 1983 pp 296-299 [TEXT, DRA, PH, TEMP, RAIN, PHO] Rehm S 1991 pp 158 [USE] Kay D 1979 pp 11-16 [TEMP, KTMP, RAIN, TEXT, DRA, PH] Duke J 1981 pp 300-302 320 [PHO, FER, DRA, KTMP, TEXT, RAIN, TEMP, PH] Rice R 1990 pp 311-313 [TEXT, PH, TEMP, RAIN] Martin F 1984 pp 32-36 [TEMP, RAIN, PHO, DRA, USE] Roecklein J 1987 pp 508 [USE, TEMP, DRA] Siemonsma J 1993 pp 274-278 [USE, PHO, LIG, TEMP, RAIN, DRA, TEXT, PH] Maesen L 1989 pp 77-81 [USE, PHO, TEMP, TEXT, PH, DRA]