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Soybean (Glycine max)
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On the map in 2 countries crop

Soybean

Glycine max

Family: Fabaceae

On our map this plant appears in 2 countries and ranks highest in: China, United States.

An annual plant of the legume family growing 0.5–1.5 m tall, with stems and leaves covered in reddish hairs. The leaves are trifoliate, and small white or purple pea-like flowers open in the leaf axils. The fruit is a hairy pod holding 2–4 seeds rich in protein and oil. Like other legumes it lives in symbiosis with root-nodule bacteria that fix nitrogen from the air, so it enriches the soil. The seeds are made into tofu, soy milk, soy sauce, fermented pastes and oil, and the young pods are eaten boiled as edamame.

Description from: China.

More: Wikipedia (en) Wikipedia (pl) Plants of the World Online (Kew)

Significance in each country

  1. China no. 12 of 15 native

    The soybean was domesticated in China several thousand years ago – it was counted among the “five grains” of ancient China, and tradition credits Prince Liu An of the Han dynasty with inventing tofu.

  2. United States no. 14 of 15 cultivated

    Together with Brazil, the USA is the world’s largest producer and exporter of soybeans; the crop spread in the 20th century, and on Corn Belt farms soybeans usually alternate with maize from year to year.