JOtm OF Afflmm MARCH 
Vol. XI Washington, D. C., December 24, 1917 No. 13 
STRUCTURE OF THE POD AND THE SEED OF 
THE GEORGIA VELVET BEAN, STlZ- 
OLOBIUM DEERINGIANUM 
By Charles V. Piper, Agrostologist in Charge , Forage-Crop Investigations, and 
J. Marion Shull, Botanical Artist, Fruit Disease Investigations , Bureau of Plant 
Industry , United States Department of Agriculture 
INTRODUCTION 
Since 1915 the culture of the velvet bean in the South has been very 
greatly increased, mainly owing to the introduction and development of 
short-season varieties. The early sorts are the Yokohama bean ( Stizo- 
lobium hassjoo Piper and Tracy); the Chinese velvet bean (S. niveum 
(Roxb.) Kuntze var.); the Georgia velvet bean, an early variety of the 
old Florida velvet bean ( 5 . deeringianum Bort); and also several varieties 
of hybrid origin. The Georgia velvet bean is at present the most largely 
grown. In 1916 the crop of beans reached such large proportions that 
numerous mills found it profitable to manufacture velvet-bean meal, 
prepared by grinding the dry ripe pods and seeds. This product has 
piet with high favor as a rich protein feed. The acreage of velvet beans 
planted in 1917 is several times larger than in 1916. 
No previous studies seem to have been made of the microscopic 
structure of the velvet bean, or, indeed, of any species of Stizolobium. 
The structure of other leguminous seeds has been described and illus¬ 
trated by various botanists, particularly Kondo. 1 Inasmuch as velvet- 
bean meal promises to become an important commercial feed, the micro¬ 
scopic structures of the pod and seed are important as a basis of identi¬ 
fying the meal, either pure, adulterated, or in mixtures. 2 
STRUCTURE OF THE POD 
Hairs (PI. 50, G).—The hairs on the surface of the pod consist of a 
long terminal cell, empty dr apparently so, and one to six very short 
basal cells filled with protoplasm. The hairs vary greatly in length, 
1 Kondo, M. der anatomische bau einiger auslandischer hulsenfruchte, die jetzt in den 
HANDEL KOMMEN. In Ztschr. Untersuch. Nahr. u. Genussmtl., Bd. 25, Heft i, p. 1-56, 40 fig. 1913. 
2 The microscopic preparations of the material were made mostly by Dr. Albert Mann, of the Bureau 
of Plant Industry, and the drawings are alt by the junior writer. 
Journal of Agricultural Research, 
Washington, D. C. 
k 
(673) 
Vol. XI, No. 13 
Dec. 24, 1917 
Key No. G.—130 
