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Catjang bean [Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walpers cv-gr. Biflora E. Westphal]

Explanations

The situation in Japan and information from the NIAS genebank
Catjang bean is called "hata sasage", "yakko sasage" or "sasage" in Japan. It is considered that this legume was frmerly cuyltivated widely in Japan. The cultivation is decreasing recently. We have explored the Nansei Archipelago (the southernmost islands) and Kagoshima prefecture (north of the Nanasei Archipelago) and collected several catjang bean samples. Red seeded or black seeded varieties were cultivatd there (Katsuta and Takeya. 1992, Kawase and Tomooka, 1993, Tomooka et al. 1994, Tomooka 1996).
It is used to make "sekihan" (steamed glutinous rice colored red by boiled cowpea or azuki) for the traditional ceremony and celebration. It is also cooked as "ann" (bean jam) and/or "zenzai" (sweet bean soup with glutinous rice cake). It is also eaten mixed with rice.
Origin
Catjang bean (Vigna unguiculata cultigroup Biflora) is considered to have developed in India from cowpea (cultigroup Unguiculata) which originated in West Africa (Ng and Marechal 1985).
Taxonomy
Catjang bean is an annual food legume belonging to the subgenus Vigna in the genus Vigna. Verdcourt (1970) subdivided cultivated forms of V.unguiculata into three subspecies, i.e., subsp. unguiculata, subsp. sesquipedalis and subsp. cylindlica. Later, the cultivated forms of V.unguiculata was classified into four cultigroups, i.e., cv-gr.Unguiculata, cv-gr.Sesquipedalis, cv-gr.Biflora (= subsp. cylindlica) and cv-gr.Textilis (Marechal et al. 1978). 2n=22.
Characteristics
Leaf is shiny. Flower color is purple or white. Flower size is smaller than that of cowpea. Seed size is also smaller than that of cowpea. Seed color is either black, red or brown. Pod is shorter and upright, 7-13cm long.
Uses
In India, it is prepared as "dhal soup" (dehusked split bean soup). It is also used as a forage crop.
References
Katsuta,M. and M.Takeya. 1992. Exploration and Collection of Grain Legumes and Millets in Okinawa Prefecture. Annual Report on Exploration and Introduction of Plant Genetic Resources. Vol.7: 1-8. (in Japanese with English summary)
Kawase,M. and N.Tomooka. 1993. Collectionand Field Study on the Landraces of Cultivated Crops in Okinawa, Kume-jima and Amami-Oshima Islands. Annual Report on Exploration and Introduction of Plant Genetic Resources. Vol.9: 7-14. (in Japanese with English summary)
Marechal,R., J.M.Mascherpa and F.Stainer. 1978. Etude taxonomique d'un groupe complexe d'speces des genres Phaseolus et Vigna (Papilionaceae) sur la base de donnees morphologiques et polliniques, traitees par l'analyse informatique. Boissiera 28 : 191-193.
Ng,N.Q. and R.Marechal. 1985. Cowpea taxonomy, origin and germ plasm. In "Cowpea Research, Production and Utilization" eds.S.R.Singh and K.O.Rachie. pp.11-21. John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
Tomooka,N., H.Nakayama, K.Yamada and A.Sugimoto. 1994. Exploration for Collecting Landraces of Cultivated Crops in Tanegashima and Yakushima Islands, Kagoshima Prefecture. Annual Report on Exploration and Introduction of Plant Genetic Resources. Vol.10: 15-24. (in Japanese with English summary)
Tomooka, N. 1996. Collection and Field Study on Landraces of Cultivated Crops in Kagoshima Prefecture. Annual Report on Exploration and Introduction of Plant Genetic Resources. Vol.12: 9-19. (in Japanese with English summary)
Verdcourt,B. 1970. Studies in the Leguminosae - Papilionoideae for the "Flora of Tropical East Africa" : IV. Kew Bulletin 24 : p.542-544.