Phaseolus grayanus

Kearney and Peebles 1969, McDougal 1973

Duration: Perennial Nativity: Native Lifeform: Forb/Herb General: Herbaceous perennials, arising from a thick, woody taproot, this up to 3 cm in diameter, stems trailing to twining. Leaves: Pinnately trifoliate, leaflets broadly deltoid, up to 5 cm long, mostly deeply lobed, the veins not prominent and noticeably reticulate on the underside. Flowers: Pinkish-purple, borne in loose, axillary racemes, the peduncles up to 25 cm long. Fruits: Pods falcate (sickle-shaped), persistently pubescent, 3-4 cm long, the style in fruit stout, to 1 mm long. Seeds round, smooth, and relatively large. Ecology: Found from 5,000-8,500 ft (1524-2591 m); flowering July-September. Distribution: Texas, Arizona; Mexico. Notes: The keys to this species are the relatively large, deeply lobed, deltoid leaflets up to 5 cm long, the purplish-pink flowers, and the peduncles up to 25 cm long. Ethnobotany: There is no specific use recorded for the species, but the genus has uses; the seeds were parched and ground to make mush and soup. Synonyms: None Editor: LCrumbacher 2011 Etymology: Phaseolus comes from the Greek phaselos, "a little boat or light vessel," referring to its similarity to a bean pod, this name became the Latin phaseolus used for a kind of bean, while grayanus is named after Asa Gray (1810-1888), one of the most eminent American botanists and professor at Harvard, who played an important part in the identification of many Sierra wildflowers.