Belongs to the moth family. Plants of the legume family. The value of legumes in the economy

A large family of Moths is distributed in latitudes with a temperate or tropical climate. It includes green plants with recognizable flowers.

Description and meaning

Butterflies or Legumes are a subfamily and family of angiosperms or flowering plants. They belong to the class Dicotyledons. It has about 18 thousand species. Annual (beans) and perennial (clover) herbaceous representatives of the family are common. Shrubs (yellow locust) and trees (African rosewood) are less common.

Rice. 1. Yellow acacia.

Some types of leguminous plants are cultivated as food or raw materials for medicines. Examples of plants for different needs:

• food - use in the human diet - lentils, beans, peas, beans, soybeans, peanuts;
• fodder - feed for livestock - clover, lupine, alfalfa, vetch, camel thorn;
• medicinal - production of medicines and tablets for cough, hypertension, constipation, helminthic invasion - licorice, yellow sweet clover, spherophysis, thermopsis;
• technical - production of varnishes, oils, glue (dyeing gorse), as well as insecticides (derris, sophora, lonchocarpus);
• decorative - beautification of residential areas - acacia, wisteria, sweet peas.

Many members of the family are excellent honey plants; fragrant honey is obtained from nectar.

Morphology

A characteristic distinguishing feature of moth plants is the corolla of the moth type. The petals are partially fused, form an asymmetrical corolla and resemble a moth or a boat. Allocate a sail or flag (large petal), oars or wings (lateral) and a boat or keel (fused).

Such a corolla device protects the flower from inefficient pollinators - flies and butterflies. To get to the nectar, you need to push the petals apart, and this is within the power of stronger insects, such as bumblebees. When collecting nectar, the insect sits on a boat and rubs its abdomen against horizontally located stamens, collecting pollen.

Rice. 2. A flower in the form of a moth.

A detailed description of all parts of the moth plant is presented in the table.

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Rice. 3. Leaves with tendrils.

On the roots, nitrogen-fixing bacteria penetrating from the soil form nodules. Bacteria obtain organic matter and water from the roots and supply the plant with nitrogen. It is thanks to the bacteria that Moths are saturated with vegetable protein and, after dying off, are an excellent nitrogenous fertilizer.

What have we learned?

Plants of the Moth family (Bean) are distinguished by flowers in the form of moths, are used as food for humans and livestock, raw materials for medical and technical needs. Plants are saturated with nitrogen and are a rich source of protein.

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Peas, soybeans, sweet peas, lentils, peanuts, soybeans... Everyone knows the names of these plants. In our article, we will consider the structural features of the vegetative organs and the formula of the legume flower.

General characteristics of the family

Leguminous or moth plants belong to the dicotyledonous class. Systematics count them in nature more than 20 thousand species. Most of them are valuable food and fodder crops. Of particular importance is the ability of some species to fix atmospheric nitrogen. Legumes are represented by all life forms: herbs, shrubs and trees. As a rule, with on the stem. The legume flower is a systematic feature.

Conventions

In botany, there is such a thing as a flower formula. It represents the symbols of the parts of this generative organ. The numbers in this row indicate the quantitative indicators of the elements of the generative organ.

They are decoded as follows:

• H - cup. It is a collection of sepals surrounding the receptacle.
• B - whisk. These are all flower petals.
• Oh - perianth. It includes a bowl and a whisk.
• T is the number of stamens.
• P is the number of pistils.

Legume flower formula

Now let's decipher this combination of symbols using a specific example. The flower formula of moth or leguminous plants is as follows: P5 L1 + 2 + (2) T (9 + 1) P1. Such a structure visually resembles a boat or a butterfly. This determines the name moth.

So, the perianth of the representatives of this family consists of five sepals and petals. The structure of the latter is differentiated. The topmost petal is larger than the rest. They call it "sail". On both sides there are side lobes - "oars". The remaining pair fuses along the bottom edge. This is how the "boat" is formed. Legumes have one pistil. There may be ten stamens in one case, in another, nine of them grow together, and one remains free. The petals are sometimes also called the winged butterfly.

flower type

The bean flower formula also carries additional information. Such structures are bisexual. This means that the flowers have a pistil and stamens. They can be single - large with bright and wide petals.

Another one of characteristic features is symmetry. According to this feature, legume flowers are irregular or zygomorphic. This means that a single vertical plane can be drawn through them.

In a number of cases, the formation of inflorescences occurs in representatives of this family. Sometimes the flower formula of which was given above forms inflorescences. It can be a brush, head or panicle.

Pollination and seed formation

The formula of the legume flower indicates some of its differences in different species of the family. These features also determine the method of pollination. For example, in a clover, each petal is twisted into a long tube. Therefore, only bumblebees with a special proboscis can pollinate it. Legumes also attract bees and butterflies. Peas, lupins, astragalus, wikis self-pollinate.

A feature of legume seeds is the absence of endosperm - a reserve nutrient. These are dicot plants. Therefore, their embryo consists of two cotyledons, a rudimentary stalk, a root and a bud, which contains the rudiments of the first leaves. Outside there is a protective shell. The cotyledons are turned to each other with flat sides. They are connected in one of the parts. In this place, the rudimentary organs are located.

The stock of substances is enclosed directly in the cotyledons. Scientists have proven that lupine can be grown even from seeds that have lain in permafrost for a long time. And for beans, underground germination is characteristic. In a biological sense, this is very beneficial, because it provides protection from animals, temperature changes.

Fruits and seeds

The fruit of this family is called a bean. It develops from the carpel. The bean is a dry multi-seeded. After maturation, it opens along the seam between the two wings. They have seeds on them. Unlike the pod, there is no vertical partition inside the bean.

Bean seeds have been eaten for a long time. Peas and beans contain a large number of proteins, and soy and peanuts - vegetable oils. Clover and alfalfa are indispensable because of their great nutritional value. Great importance these plants are also used as honey plants. White and yellow caragana, as well as mimosa, are well-known ornamental species.

Meaning

Bean shoots are a valuable green manure. They are plowed and left on the surface of the soil, which contributes to its enrichment with organic matter and improves the structure. In the pharmaceutical industry, licorice, sweet clover, white locust are used as raw materials. Among the woods, sandalwood is the most valuable.

Nodule bacteria settle only on the roots of legumes. This is a special species that is able to absorb atmospheric nitrogen. What is the use of such organisms? Nitrogen is an essential element for stem and leaf formation. And in the air this substance is enough - up to 78%. But plants cannot absorb atmospheric nitrogen. Nodule bacteria convert it into a form that dissolves in water and can be absorbed from the soil by the roots. The existence of these organisms is mutually beneficial: bacteria provide plants with nitrogen, and in return receive mineral nutrients.

So, the formula of a bean flower looks like P5 L1 + 2 + (2) T (9 + 1) P1. Such a structure consists of five carpels and the same number of petals. The latter differ in size and shape. As a result, the legume flower has an irregular shape and is zygomorphic. This means that only one axis of symmetry can be drawn through it. This type of symmetry is called zygomorphic. Visually, the flower of leguminous plants resembles a boat with oars and a sail or a butterfly. This determines the second name of this family - moths. All legume flowers are bisexual. They have one pistil. And the number of stamens is ten. In some of them, nine of them grow together, and one remains free.

nutritional value

The nutritional value of legumes is enormous. Before the spread of potatoes in Europe, millions of people daily ate, along with cereals, nutritious, cheap and prolific legumes: peas, garden beans, cowpeas (a relative of beans, unfortunately forgotten in Europe today), beans themselves, imported into XVI century. And now large regions (for example, Asia, South America) are very widely used for food legumes. We list some of the most famous plants.

1. Common beans. An annual herbaceous plant. The leaves are alternate, ternate, with stipules. Inflorescence - brush. It does not tolerate low temperatures, but it is more drought-resistant than peas.

2. Soy. It is ubiquitous in South and Southeast Asia, cultivated in many warm regions. Nutritious, contains up to 40 percent protein, up to 25 percent fat. Herbaceous plant, with ternate leaves. Many products are made from soy (natto, tofu, tempeh, etc.) or with its addition, soybean oil is widely used.

3. Peanut (peanut) is a herbaceous plant with paired pinnate leaves. Beans are formed underground. How does this happen? After fertilization, the flowers sink underground, where beans with a hard shell ripen. Homeland - South America, cultivated in Central Asia. Seeds contain up to 37 percent protein, up to 45 percent fat. Peanut butter is popular, as are a variety of peanut snacks. In the United States, they love peanut butter so much that they even established a special holiday for it on January 24th.

feed value

1. From fodder varieties of legumes, silage is produced - juicy nutritious animal feed obtained by fermenting the green mass of herbaceous plants. Broad beans, corn, alfalfa, vetch, sainfoin are used for silage.

2. The stems and leaves of legumes (melilot, clover, alfalfa, vetch, ledvyants, peas) are mowed, dried, and they become an excellent addition to the diet of animals in those regions where year-round grazing is impossible.

Agronomic importance

1. They enrich the soil with nitrogen, being the so-called "green fertilizers", or, scientifically, green manure (astragalus, vetch, sweet clover, etc.). How does this happen? Legumes store large amounts of nitrogen as they grow. Even during flowering, the plants plow and they, rotting, return nitrogen to the soil.

2. The roots of legumes, long and strong, loosen the soil well, saturate it with oxygen, and prevent erosion.

decorative value

The legume family combines a variety of plants, including emphatically decorative ones. They wonderfully decorate parks, gardens and household plots: for example, false acacia locust, broom, clianthus with its large red flowers of an unusual shape.

medicinal value

And here legumes are indispensable companions of man. They have been used in medicine for thousands of years! Thermopsis lanceolate, licorice, sweet clover are used in the treatment of cough, have many useful properties. Cassia helps in the treatment of stomach, astragalus - in hypertension. In addition, many legumes are valuable honey plants, since the collected honey is a delicious medicine in itself.

Flowers in plants of the legume family are solitary or collected in an inflorescence - a brush or a head. The flower looks like a boat or a butterfly, so the second name of the family is Moth. The corolla of a bean flower consists of 5 petals: the upper large one is the “flag” or “sail”, the two side ones are “wings” or “oars”, and the two inner ones grow together along the lower edge and form a “boat”. The "boat" contains 10 stamens and 1 pestle. In some legumes (peas, alfalfa), the threads of 9 stamens grow together, and one remains free. The flower formula of most legumes is: H 5 L 1 + 2 + (2) T (9) + 1 P 1. The flowers are pollinated by insects, mostly bees. In clover, the petals grow together into a long tube, and the proboscis of the bees does not reach the nectar. Therefore, clover is pollinated by bumblebees with a longer proboscis. In peas, lupine, self-pollination occurs.

root system

The root system of legumes is pivotal. Most of them have nodules on the roots - the result of the vital activity of nodule bacteria that penetrate the root from the soil. Nodule bacteria are able to use nitrogen from the air and form nitrogen-containing minerals that plants feed on. Nitrogen is part of proteins, so legumes are rich in proteins. After the roots of leguminous plants die off, the soil is enriched with nitrogen and becomes more fertile.

Among the plants of the legume family, all life forms are found: trees ( locust, or white acacia, mimosa), shrubs ( caragana, or yellow acacia), perennial grasses ( clover, lupine), as well as curly forms ( peas, Vika).

Representatives of legumes have developed adaptations to a wide variety of natural conditions. Therefore, they are found almost everywhere. Legumes are habitat-forming species in many communities. Thus, some types of acacias dominate the African and Australian savannahs, and woody forms are part of tropical and sub-tropical rainforests.

Eating

Since ancient times, in many agricultural regions of the world, they have been growing peas, beans, lentils, beans, rich in proteins and carbohydrates. A centuries-old culture in East Asia and America is soy, the seeds of which contain 45% protein and 24% oil. Milk, cheese, flour, sweets are made from soybeans. In our country, soybeans are grown in the Far East and in the Krasnodar Territory. The legumes are peanut, or peanut. The seeds of its beans contain up to 50% superior oil.

Licorice is used in food production, for example, in the manufacture of halva.

Medicine

Legumes are one of the best honey plants. Many of them and medicinal plants. For example, don-nick white has long been used for increased excitability and insomnia. thermopsis And licorice are part of cough mixtures. material from the site

Licorice smooth has long been used in folk medicine. Theophrastus recommended licorice for respiratory problems and asthma. In China, it is valued as highly as ginseng root. In Tibetan medicine, licorice root is part of many medicines.

Agriculture

Important forage legumes and for agriculture - clover, vetch, rank, alfalfa, as they produce high-quality hay. Some legumes, for example lupine, used as a green fertilizer: in the summer it is mowed and plowed into the soil.

ornamental legumes

Ornamental types of legumes are also widely known - lupine, sweet pea, wisteria.

All adults and even children know beans and peas, beans and lentils, fragrant acacias and clover, peanuts and mimosa, and meanwhile, all these are plants of the legume (or moth) family. An extensive group, it is difficult to overestimate the benefits of which for a person. We eat these plants, we plant them for beauty, we improve the soil with them, we use wood, we dye our clothes, and we even heal ourselves.

Legume family: general characteristics

The family, familiar to everyone from school, unites a huge number of species, according to rough estimates, about 17-18 thousand. Botanists divide it into three subfamilies (based on the structure of the flower): caesalpinia, mimosa, moth. It is interesting to note that leguminous plants include the genus Astragalus, the largest in terms of the number of species among representatives of flowering plants (about 2400). Plants of this family have a fairly large habitat both in the hot tropics (mainly caesalpine and mimosa), and in the Far North, in deserts and savannahs.

Nitrogen fixation is a hallmark of the entire family. The roots of leguminous plants have nodules, which are formed as a result of the growth of parenchymal tissue. And this, in turn, is explained by the introduction and settlement inside the plant of nitrogen-fixing bacteria belonging to the genus Rhizobium. They have an amazing ability to absorb and accumulate atmospheric nitrogen, which is later used by the plant itself for its growth. Such large reserves of a vital element have a good effect on the environment. Legumes are great for improving soil fertility. This is widely used both on an industrial scale and by competent and knowledgeable gardeners who do not forget to alternate planting different crops in their area. Every year, they return about 100-140 kilograms of nitrogen back to the soil per hectare.

The structure of the leaves of leguminous plants

Leguminous plants can have different leaf shapes. They can be conditionally divided into several groups:

• paired pinnate and doubly pinnate (pea, yellow acacia) leaves, they are located on both sides of the stem;
• simplified (reduced to one apical leaf);
• falsely simple, formed as a result of the fusion of two apical leaves;
• phyllodes (in African species of acacias) are flattened leaf petioles.

Leguminous plants are characterized by an amazing property - parotid leaves can fold at night. This is due to the fact that there are thickenings at the base of the petioles, which, due to a change in turgor, set the leaf blade or only the leaves in motion. For example, shy mimosa is able to do this instantly, since even a light touch of its leaves causes an instant loss of osmotic pressure in them. This property was noticed a very long time ago and was the reason for naming the plant so.

flower and inflorescence

Leguminous plants can have various inflorescences, but most often it is a panicle or brush, sometimes capitate brushes (clover), much less often they are reduced to one flower. Representatives of the family are characterized by cross-pollination, in which pollen from one flower is transferred to another much less often by insects (bees, bumblebees) or bats and birds in tropical species.

The flowers of leguminous plants can be zygomorphic or actinomorphic (for example, mimosas). The calyx usually consists of four, less often of five sepals, which grow together. There are 5 petals (for all moths and some representatives of two other subfamilies) or 4. Their name and division are very interesting, depending on the function performed. So, the topmost and largest was called the "flag", it attracts insects that pollinate the plant. The petals located on the sides are commonly called wings, and this is a kind of "landing area". The innermost, as a rule, grow together along the lower edge and form a boat that protects the stamens and pistil from insects that are not pollinators. But, for example, in mimosa, all petals are of the same shape - free or fused.

The fruits of leguminous plants

In this case, there is an absolute unity of all species of the family. The fruit is called a bean (single- or multi-seeded), opening along the dorsal or ventral suture. Seeds inside the fruit are quite large, with or without endosperm, cotyledons are well developed. The appearance of the bean can be absolutely any, as well as the size. In some species, its length reaches one and a half meters. Seed dispersal sometimes occurs on its own, when the valves of the fruit, when opened, twist in a spiral, and they scatter in different directions, for example, in an acacia. Some tropical species are dispersed by animals or birds. The ovary of the familiar peanut (peanut) due to negative geotropism, that is, the ability to grow and develop in a certain direction, when formed, goes into the soil by 8-10 cm, where the fruit then develops.

The value of legumes in the economy

In terms of practical importance for humans, plants of the legume family are second only to cereals. Among them are a huge number of food crops of world importance: soybeans, peas, beans, peanuts, chickpeas, lentils and many others. Some of them have been cultivated by people for more than a millennium.

Leguminous plants are of great importance as forage grasses, this category includes: clover, alfalfa, lupine, sainfoin, etc. Some tropical members of the family (for example, logwood, pericopsis, dalbergia) are a source of valuable and highly decorative wood, painted in pink, almost red, dark brown or almost black.

Decorative and medicinal value

There are also ornamental species among legumes, such as wisteria. This is a woody species native to China with large racemes of fragrant inflorescences. A very popular garden and park plant. Another representative is the whitened acacia, which is widespread on the Black Sea coast. From herbaceous gardens, for example, sweet peas, lupins are grown. Everyone knows the indigo color, but few people know that the dye of the same name is obtained from the indigo dye plant, a small shrub from the legume family.

Some species have long been used in medicine: fenugreek, astragalus, sweet clover, etc. Everyone is familiar with licorice, or naked licorice. It is a herbaceous legume that is widely used throughout the world as a cough medicine (healing properties have been known since ancient Egypt). Its roots and rhizomes are used for this. In some European countries, licorice sweets are very popular, which even children love. They have a characteristic black glossy color.