Fabaceae FAMILY

Phaseolus coccineus

Edibility

4/5

Medicinal

2/5

Safety & Hazards

Large quantities of the raw mature seed are poisonous[ 10 Title Poisonous Plants and Animals. Publication Author Altmann. H. Publisher Chatto and Windus Year 1980 ISBN 0-7011-2526-8 Description A small book, reasonable but not very detailed. , 65 Title A Colour Atlas of Poisonous Plants. Publication Author Frohne. D. and Pfänder. J. Publisher Wolfe Year 1984 ISBN 0723408394 Description Brilliant. Goes into technical details but in a very readable way. The best work on the subject that I've come across so far. ]. The toxins play a role in protecting the plant from insect predation.

Botanical Description

Phaseolus coccineus is a perennial climbing plant producing annual twining stems 3 - 7 metres tall from a tuberous rootstock. The stems scramble over the ground or climb into the surrounding vegetation. Dwarf, non-climbing forms growing around 60cm tall have been developed[ 299 Title Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa. Publication Author Website http://www.prota.org Publisher Year 0 ISBN Description An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa. ]. Runner beans have been a cultivated food crop since at least 900 AD. They are commonly cultivated in both temperate and tropical areas of the world for their edible seeds and immature seedpods[ 200 Title The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. Publication Author Huxley. A. Publisher MacMillan Press Year 1992 ISBN 0-333-47494-5 Description Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed. ]. The plant is also sometimes grown as an ornamental[ 299 Title Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa. Publication Author Website http://www.prota.org Publisher Year 0 ISBN Description An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa. ].

Habitat & Origin

Origintemperate; tropical

Native RangeSouthern N. America - Mexico.

HabitatIn or around mostly mixed forests, often on steep slopes or along stream beds, open wooded grassy areas, or on edges of cloud forest; at elevations from 1,500 - 2,500 metres[ 1555 Title Taxonomy, Distribution, and Ecology of the Genus Phaseolus (Leguminosae-Papilionoideae) in North America, Mexico and Publication SIda, Botanical Mlscellany, No 23 Author Freytag G.F. & Debouck D.G. Website http://www.brit.org/sida Publisher Botanical Researeh Institute of Texas Year 2002 ISBN 1-889878-11-1 Description An excellent, detailed study of the genus Phaseolus, it has been made available on-line as an open access document. ].