Adzuki Bean🫘
Vigna angularis
アズキ
An essential bean in Japanese traditional and ceremonial foods such as wagashi confections, sekihan (red rice), and zenzai (sweet bean soup). Characterized by its red color and sweetness, the custom of eating sekihan at New Year and celebrations has continued since ancient times. Native to East Asia and long cultivated in Japan, with Hokkaido as the main production area.
Identification Points
- ✓Trifoliate compound leaves with nearly rhombic leaflets
- ✓Yellow papilionaceous (butterfly-shaped) flowers
- ✓Pods are slender and elongated, turning dark brown when mature
- ✓Seeds are dark red with a conspicuous white hilum
Habitat
Fields and farmland
Season
Sowing: June–July, harvest: September–October
Morphological TraitsAI-estimated, needs verification
Leaf arrangement
Alternate
Leaf type
Compound
Venation
Pinnate
Leaf margin
Entire
Leaf shape
Ovate
Growth form
Herb
Petal count
5 petals
Petal fusion
Free
Habitat
Cultivated
Ovary position
Superior
Phylogenetic Positionマメ科 →
Phylogenetic Position
Angiosperms > Eudicots > Core eudicots > Fabales > Fabaceae
Divergence Era
Late Cretaceous to Paleogene (approx. 70–60 million years ago)
Evolution Notes
Domesticated independently in East Asia from the wild ancestor Vigna angularis var. nipponensis. Among legumes, it is adapted to relatively warm climates.
View on evolution timeline →Sources & References
AI-generated, needs verification