Phaseolus ritensis
| Phaseolus ritensis | |
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| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | |
| (unranked): | |
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| Subtribe: | Phaseolinae
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| Species: | P. ritensis
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| Binomial name | |
| Phaseolus ritensis M.E.Jones
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Phaseolus ritensis is a plant species native to Arizona, Sonora, Chihuahua, Sinaloa and Nuevo León. Common names include "Santa Rita Mountain bean" (in USA) and "cocolmeca" in Mexico. It grows in forested areas in the mountains.
Phaseolus ritensis is a perennial herb with a large woody taproot. It is a trailing herb with trifoliate leaves and pink to lavender flowers.[2][3][4][5]
Uses
The plant is widely valued for both food and medicine throughout much of its native range. Green and ripe fruits served as an important food source in times past. Roots are the source of medicine, glue, and a fermenting agent.[6][7]
References
- ^ The Plant List
- ^ M.E.Jones, Contributions of Western Botany. 12: 14. 1908
- ^ Thomas H. Kearney & Robert H. Peebles. 1979. Arizona Flora, with Supplement, Second Edition. University of California Press, Berkeley./ ISBN 0-520-00637-2
- ^ P. Martin et al. 2000. Gentry's Rio Mayo Plants. The Tropical Deciduous Forest & Environs of Northwest Mexico. University of Arizona Press, Tucson.
- ^ Marechal, R., J. M. Mascherpa & F. Stainier. 1978. Etude taxonomique d'un groupe complexe d'especes ... Phaseolus et Vigna (Papilionaceae) sur ... informatique. Boissiera 28: 1–273.
- ^ G.P Nabhan, J.W. Berry & C.W. Weber. Wild beans of the greater Southwest: Phaseolus metcalfei and P. ritensis. Economic Botany 34:68-85. 1980.
- ^ Pennington, CW. 1963. The Tarahumar of Mexico, their material culture. University of Utah Press, Salt Lake City