Editing Fabaceae (section)

=== Food and forage ===
The [[bean#History|history of legumes]] is tied in closely with that of human civilization, appearing early in [[Asia]], the [[Americas]] (the [[common bean]], several varieties) and [[Europe]] (broad beans) by 6,000 [[Anno Domini|BCE]], where they became a staple, essential as a source of protein.

Their ability to [[nitrogen fixation|fix atmospheric nitrogen]] reduces [[fertilizer]] costs for farmers and gardeners who grow legumes, and means that legumes can be used in a [[crop rotation]] to replenish soil that has been depleted of [[nitrogen]]. Legume seeds and foliage have a comparatively higher [[protein]] content than non-legume materials, due to the additional nitrogen that legumes receive through the process. Legumes are commonly used as natural fertilizers. Some legume species perform [[hydraulic redistribution|hydraulic lift]], which makes them ideal for [[intercropping]].<ref>{{cite book |last=Sprent |first=Janet I. |url=http://www.sprentland.com/index.php?pr=Janet |title=Legume Nodulation: A Global Perspective |year=2009 |publisher=Wiley-Blackwell |location=Ames, Iowa |isbn=978-1-4051-8175-4 |page=12 }} Preview available at [https://books.google.com/books?id=c-DeQ_wQr3MC&dq=legume+hydraulic+lift&pg=PR4 Google Books].</ref>

Farmed legumes can belong to numerous classes, including [[Fodder|forage]], [[cereal|grain]], blooms, pharmaceutical/industrial, fallow/green manure and timber species, with most commercially farmed species filling two or more roles simultaneously.

There are of two broad types of forage legumes. Some, like [[alfalfa]], [[clover]], [[vetch]], and ''[[Arachis]]'', are sown in [[pasture]] and grazed by livestock. Other forage legumes such as ''[[Leucaena]]'' or ''[[Albizia]]'' are woody shrub or tree species that are either broken down by livestock or regularly cut by humans to provide [[fodder]].

Grain legumes are cultivated for their [[seed]]s, and are also called [[pulse (legume)|pulses]]. The seeds are used for human and animal consumption or for the production of [[Vegetable fats and oils|oils]] for industrial uses. Grain legumes include both herbaceous plants like [[bean]]s, [[lentil]]s, [[lupin]]s, [[pea]]s and [[peanut]]s,<ref>The gene bank and breeding of grain legumes (lupine, vetch, soya and beah) / B.S. Kurlovich and S.I. Repyev (Eds.), - St. Petersburg, The N.I. Vavilov Institute of Plant Industry, 1995, 438p. - (Theoretical basis of plant breeding. V.111)</ref> and trees such as [[carob]], [[mesquite]] and [[tamarind]].

''[[Lathyrus tuberosus]]'', once extensively cultivated in Europe, forms tubers used for human consumption.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Hossaert-Palauqui |first1=M. |last2=Delbos |first2=M. |date=1983 |title=Lathyrus tuberosus L. Biologie et perspectives d'amélioration |journal=Journal d'Agriculture Traditionnelle et de Botanique Appliquée |volume=30 |issue=1 |pages=49–58 |doi=10.3406/jatba.1983.3887 |issn=0183-5173 |url=https://hal.science/hal-04454449 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.luontoportti.com/suomi/en/kukkakasvit/tuberous-pea |title=Tuberous Pea, Lathyrus tuberosus - Flowers - NatureGate |website=www.luontoportti.com |access-date=2019-07-28}}</ref>

Bloom legume species include species such as [[lupin]], which are farmed commercially for their blooms, and thus are popular in gardens worldwide. ''[[Laburnum]]'', ''[[Robinia]]'', ''[[Gleditsia]]'' (honey locust), ''[[Acacia]]'', ''[[Mimosa]]'', and ''[[Delonix]]'' are [[Ornamental plant|ornamental]] [[tree]]s and [[shrub]]s.

Industrial farmed legumes include ''[[Indigofera]]'', cultivated for the production of [[Indigo dye|indigo]], ''[[Acacia]]'', for [[gum arabic]], and ''[[Derris]]'', for the insecticide action of [[rotenone]], a compound it produces.

Fallow or [[green manure]] legume species are cultivated to be tilled back into the soil to exploit the high nitrogen levels found in most legumes. Numerous legumes are farmed for this purpose, including ''[[Leucaena]]'', ''[[Cyamopsis]]'' and ''[[Sesbania]]''.

Various legume species are farmed for timber production worldwide, including numerous ''[[Acacia]]'' species, ''[[Dalbergia]]'' species, and ''[[Castanospermum australe]]''.

Melliferous plants offer [[nectar]] to [[bee]]s and other insects to encourage them to carry pollen from the [[flower]]s of one plant to others thereby ensuring pollination. Many Fabaceae species are important sources of pollen and nectar for bees, including for honey production in the beekeeping industry. Example Fabaceae such as [[alfalfa]], and various clovers including [[Trifolium repens|white clover]] and [[Melilotus|sweet clover]], are important sources of nectar and honey for the [[Apis mellifera|Western honey bee]].<ref>{{Cite journal |title=Nectar and Pollen Plants |last1=Oertel |first1=E. |date=1967 |journal=US Dep. Agr. Handbook |volume=335 |pages=10–16}}</ref>