More about crops

Legumes belong to the plant family Fabaceae. Most of the legumes of agricultural interest are in the subfamily Faboideae, characterized by papilionate (butterfly-like) flowers with an erect standard petal, two wing petals and two fused keel petals that protect the ovary.

This pattern may have co-evolved with bees because there are many examples in nature of dependency between bee species and legume species. While some crop legumes do not rely on bees for pollination anymore (soybean, pea, chickpea, lentil), others remain partly (faba bean) or strongly (red clover) dependent on them.

Most legumes support biological nitrogen fixation. They supply themselves with a large share of the nitrogen they need. They also further enrich the soil with fixed nitrogen. This renewable source of nitrogen supports the formation of protein in the seeds. Thus legumes are very valuable crops. They produce high protein seeds for food and feed, high protein forages, and contribute to soil fertility. Legumes are the cornerstone of many sustainable cropping systems.