COWPEAS, OR KAFFIR BEANS. 153 



buff, purple, maroon, pink or white, marbled and speckled. In 

 all cowpeas the embryo is yellowish. 



Harvey and Saunders" state that the catjang was com- 

 monly cultivated for its pods in Cape Colony in 1894. A 

 number of species are found wild in South Africa, some of which 

 when properly exploited may prove of agricultural value. 



The varieties most commonly known in South Africa 

 are : — 



Kaffir Beans. — As commonly grown and sold, these are a 

 mixture of numerous types. Maturity varies, and generally 

 prostrate forms predominate, though bushy types are also found. 

 These have been grown for many years by the natives, who 

 look upon them as " crop medicine." It is a native custom to 

 grow this crop with their sorghums and millets, and naturally 

 in this practice they have noticed the advantage to the soil. 

 The seed is joroduced in large quantities in the native terri- 

 tories and is generally cheap. 



Erect or Bushy Types. — Whippoorwill has subreniform 

 seeds, buff marbled with brown in colour. It is early, taking 

 three and a half months to mature seed, and is a good forage 

 variety. 



New Era. — The seeds are small, rhomboidal, buff, dotted 

 with minute blue specks. A very early variety. 



Iron possesses buff' seeds, rhomboidal, very angular and 

 hard. This variety is resistant to cowpea wilt and root-knot 

 diseases. It matures about the same time as whippoorwill. 



Prostrate or Trailing: Wonder or Clay or Unknown. — Has 

 buff coloured seeds, is late, of very heavy growth, and excellent, 

 therefore, for green manure. 



In a variety trial at Potchefstroom the following results 

 were obtained : — 



Soil. — The cowpea does well on a wide range of soils, pro- 

 vided they are well drained, but prefers a loam. It is used as 

 a soil renovating crop, and fortunately does surprisingly well on 

 comparatively impoverished soils. The ground should be well 

 prepared. 



