Department of Environmental Science, University of Kalyani, Nadia, West Bengal - 741 235, India.
1Department of Biological Sciences, Graduate School of Science, University of Tokyo, Hongo 7-3-1, Tokyo 113–0033, Japan.
Morphological variability of seed coat surfaces of fifteen taxa of economically important legumes of the tribe Phaseoleae (cultivars of Glycine max, Erythrina variegata, Lab lab purpureus, Vigna unguiculata, Cajanus cajan) was studied by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). A distinctive pattern of surface features was shown by each taxon. Seeds were obovate to ovate in shape except in Erythrina variegata where they were oblanceolate, and the color varied from black and brown to derivatives of brown. Variations in spermoderm characters were observed at the varietal level also.
