426 



PEAS, BEANS, VETCHES, PEANUTS 



duced into the United States as early as 1829, but received little 

 attention until about 1890. It was the need of a drought-resistant 

 legume for the western States that attracted most attention to soy 

 beans between the years 1890 and 1900. Since 1900 some 300 varie- 

 ties have been imported, mostly from Asia, and given trial in the 

 United States. 



Varieties. The soy bean plant has a strong, upright habit of 



FIG. 183. Soy beans in rows three feet apart, for seed or forage. 



growth, with little tendency to produce vines. It has a determinate 

 growth, that is, the plant and seeds all ripen at the same time, in 

 which it differs from the cow pea. The pods usually grow in thick 

 clusters near the main stem. The height of the plant varies from 

 eighteen inches to sixty inches, and varieties vary in maturing season 

 from sixty to two hundred days. In all varieties the plant is 

 decidedly hairy on the stem, leaves, and pods. 



