**2. Taxonomy of cowpea**

Vigna unguiculata *(L.) Walp: A Strategic Crop for Nutritional Security, Well Being... DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.103025*


**Figure 1.** *Morphology of Cowpea***.**

#### **Figure 2.** V. unguiculata *(L.) Walp Floral Diagram with Floral formula.*

**Figure 3.** *Variety of cowpea grown by the many countries of people.*

The most common important cultivar of cowpea is *V. unguiculata* is globally accepted. The *V. unguiculata* is belongs to tracheobionta sub-kingdom means have well developed xylem for water and ions transport and prominent phloem for storage function. The super division of cow pea is having starchy seeds.

The Magnoliopsida class of this plant describes the ovule enclosed with ovary. The order of the plant os Rosales means the petals separated. This group crops family Fabaceae is particularly bean or pea plants. There are many sub species such as *Sesquipedalis*, *Tenuis, Dekindtiana* and *Stenophylla* characterized in 1993.

Cowpea are annual, small, sub erect herbaceous plant, have tap root system with root nodules, Glabrous stems and leaves are alternate and compound in nature. The fruits have pods and have cross pollination and epigeal seed germination. Inflorecence is receme, flowers bisexual, have five fused sepals and five free petals. It also has polyandrocium and monocarpellary superior ovary (**Figures 1** and **2**).

The word 'cowpea' primarily mentioned in America on 1798. The bean plant fodder was eagerly eating the cow animals, so the name as cowpea. The common name *V. unguiculata* plant is easily identified by the presence of black-eye on the hilum of bean like seeds. These plants cultivated in southern states in the earth. The pea seeds characteristically by pods are tightly closed so called as crowder pea. Their pods based leading to the other common names of southern pea or crowder pea. The cow pea plants varied in different place to place and different varieties of seeds present across the india and other countries (**Figure 3**). The black eyed seeds of the cowpea are common. The sub species *Sesquipedalis* have long pods in Asia so it called Chinese long-bean.
