Pigeon Pea (Cajanus Cajan (L.) Millsp.) Syn. Cajanus Indicus Spreng

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Taxonomic Classification
Kingdom: Planate
Division: Magnoliophyta
Class: Magnoliopsida
Subclass: Asteridae
Order: Solanales
Family: Leguminosae
Genus: Cajanus
Species: C. cajan

C. cajan is a woody, short-lived perennial shrub, but sometimes grown as an annual. The plant reaches 1-4m in height and has a deep tap-root with longer laterals.

Morphological Characters

Stem: The young stems are angled and hairy.

Leaves: Leaves are trifoliate and spirally arranged with a phyllotaxy of 2/5. They tend to be deciduous. The leaf petiole is grooved above. Stipules are small and hairy and the stipples are small. Puluvinus is present at the base of petiole and at the base of leaflets. Leaflets are lanceolate to narrow elliptic in shape, entire, acute at both ends and hairy on both surfaces. The lower surface of the leaflets is grey color with minute yellow resinous glands. The terminal leaflet is larger and longer-stalked than the short-stalked laterals.

Flowers: The plant has small, terminal and/or axillaries racemes with several flowers. The flowers are about 2.5cm in length. There are four calyx lobes and the upper two are united. The standard of the corolla is auricled, yellow, red or purple. Keel and wings are yellow and of equal length. The keel is incurved at the apex. There is a free vexillary stamen with the rest are joined to each other. The ovary and the base of the style are hairy and the stigma is knob-shaped.

Fruit: A flattened pod with diagonal depressions between seeds. The pods are 2-8 seeded beaked, hairy, green or dark maroon or blotched with maroon.
Seeds vary in size, shape and color, usually round or oval, white, grayish, red, brown, purplish or speckled.

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