Woolly Glycine, Rusty Glycine
Glycine tomentella

Family: Fabaceae

What it is like

A herb with long trailing or twining stems. The stems can be covered with rusty hairs. The stems can be 1 m long and have a thick rootstock. The leaves have 3 leaflets. The leaflets are oblong and up to 6 cm long by 3.5 cm wide. They taper to a blunt tip and are rounded at the base. They are hairy on both surfaces. The flower clusters are 9 cm long and in the axils of leaves. The flowers are pea shaped and 6-7 mm long. The wing is usually red or blue. The fruit are thin pods. They are 1.8-2.8 cm long and 3-4 mm wide. They are constricted between the seeds. They split open into 2 halves. There can be 6 seeds inside.

There are 10 Glycine species.

Where it is found

A tropical plant. In Papua New Guinea it grows from 20 to 1800 m altitude. It tends to grow naturally in grassland and drier areas. Often they are on sandy soils. It does best in well drained soils and a hot sunny position.

Countries/locations it is found in

Asia, Australia, China, Pacific, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, SE Asia, Taiwan

How it is used for food

The tubers are dug up, cleaned and roasted before eating.

This plant is being considered important for resistance breeding with soyabean.

Edible parts

Tubers, root

How it is grown

Plants can be grown by seed or cuttings.

Plants flower throughout most of the year.

Its other names

Local names

Synonyms

Glycine tomentosa Benth.;