Nogra

Taxonomy

Nogra E.D. Merrill Trans. Amer. Philos. Soc. ser. 2. 24(2): 201. 1935.

Subfamily: Faboideae.
Phylogenetic Number: 3.10.33.
Tribe: Phaseoleae.
Subtribe: Glycininae.
Species Studied - Species in Genus: 1 studied; 3 in genus.

Description

Fruit: A legume; unilocular; 5.5–6 cm long; 0.6 cm wide; 0.3–0.4 cm thick; 2–9 times longer than wide, or more than 9 times longer than wide; with deciduous androecial sheath; with deciduous corolla; with deciduous calyx; without orifice formed by curving of fruit or fruit segments; straight; not plicate; not twisted; symmetrical; linear; not inflated; compressed; with beak; straight; with solid beak the same color and texture as fruit; short tapered at apex; aligned with longitudinal axis of fruit; tapered at base; aligned with longitudinal axis of fruit; with the apex and base uniform in texture; coriaceous; seed chambers externally visible (slightly); margin not constricted; margin without sulcus; margin plain; wing(s) absent; nonstipitate; with all layers dehiscing; splitting along suture(s). Dehiscence of valves along both sutures; apical and down; active; with valves twisting. Replum invisible. Epicarp dull; monochrome; tan; with surface texture uniform; pubescent and indurate; with hairs erect; with 1 type of pubescence; pilose; with pubescence brown; with pubescence uniformly distributed; with simple hairs; stiff; with hair bases swollen; eglandular; without spines; not smooth; with elevated features; not veined; not tuberculate; papillose (associated with hairs); not exfoliating; without cracks; without embedded tissue, much thicker than epicarp, running from base to apex. Mesocarp present; thin; 1-layered; without balsamic vesicles; without fibers; without reniform canals; solid; coriaceous. Endocarp present; visible; dull; opaque; monochrome; tan; smooth; without adhering pieces of testa; septate; with septa thin (tissue paper-like), flexible; with septa eglandular; chartaceous; not exfoliating; remaining fused to mesocarp and epicarp; without wings; entire. Seed(s) 9–10; length oblique to fruit length; neither overlapping nor touching; in 1 series. Funiculus 1 mm long; of 1 length only; flattened; triangular. Aril present; dry; when dry rim-aril and tongue-aril; entire; cream.

Seed: 4.9 mm long; 4.3 mm wide; 2.8 mm thick; not overgrown; not angular; asymmetrical; nearly, irregularly circular; compressed; with surface smooth; without visible radicle and cotyledon lobes; without hilar sinus; with umbo on seed faces; without medial ridge on each face. Cuticle not exfoliating; not inflated; not wrinkled. Testa present; without pieces of adhering epicarp; not adhering to endocarp; free from endocarp; dull; not modified by a bloom; colored; monochrome; reddish brown; glabrous; not smooth; with elevated features; powdery and not rubbing off; chartaceous. Pleurogram absent. Pseudopleurogram absent. Fracture lines absent. Rim absent. Wing(s) absent. Raphe visible; from hilum through lens and base of seed to point opposite hilum; not bifurcating; color of testa; flush. Hilum present; fully concealed; concealed by funicular remnant and aril; without faboid split; larger than punctiform; 1.2 mm long; with curved outline; elliptic; marginal according to radicle tip; flush; within halo; halo darker than testa. Lens discernible; 0.5 mm long; with margins straight; linear; not in groove of raphe; confluent with hilum; flush; similar color as testa; darker than testa; not within corona, halo, or rim. Endosperm present; trace; not pluglike and not resembling tip of radicle; restricted to region of embryo; adnate to testa. Cotyledons smooth; both outer faces convex; both the same thickness; both more or less of equal length; not folded; margin entire 180 degrees from base of radicle; similar at apex; partially concealing radicle; notched at radicle; without lobes; with the interface division terminating at base of radicle; with margin(s) recessed; with 1 margin recessed; recessed on same side as radicle; orange; inner face flat; glabrous on inner face. Embryonic axis oblique; oblique to length of seed; without a joint evident between the radicle and the cotyledons. Radicle differentiated from cotyledon; triangular; lobe tip straight; oblique to cotyledons; centered between cotyledons; less than 1/2 length of cotyledons. Plumule well developed; glabrous.

Distribution

Asia.

Old World; India, Indochina, and China.

Generic Notes

Lackey (1981) noted that Nogra filicaulis (Kurz) Merrill "is surely not congeneric" with N. grahamii Merrill and N. dalzellii (Baker) Merrill which have "superficial similarity, but probably represent independent lines arising from a Pueraria-like stock.".

Tribal Notes

Tribe Phaseoleae

Bruneau et al. (1995) carried out cladistic analyses of tribe Phaseoleae using chloroplast DNA restriction site data. Their results indicated that the tribe is not monophyletic and that the tribal delimitations between Phaseoleae and Desmodieae (11) and between Phaseoleae and Millettieae (7) are problematic.