Size: Up to 10 inches (25 cm) high and trailing along up to 3 feet (.91 m) or more.
Growth Form: Slimleaf Bean is a forb/herb and a vine, the stems are slender and branched and the plants are trailing and/or twining; the plants have a thick woody taproot.
Leaves: Slimleaf Bean has dark green leaves that are pinnatelycompound, the 3 leaflets are narrow and pointed.
Flower Color: Slimleaf Bean has purple, magenta, pink or lavender flowers, 2 to 5 flowers on a long blooming stalk, the fruit is a narrow curved flat seed pod with 2 or more seeds.
Flowering Season: May to October
Elevation: 3,500 to 7,500 feet (1,066 to 2,285 m).
Habitat Preferences: Slimleaf Bean prefers mesas and are often growing within trees and shrubs as well as along rocky hillsides; at mid- to -higher elevations Slimleaf Bean may be found in grasslands, pinyon/juniper communities and forested areas.
Recorded Range: Slimleaf Bean is found in the southwestern United States in Arizona, New Mexico and Texas. It is also native to northern Sonora, Mexico.
Genus Information: In North America, USDA Plants Database lists 12 species and 6 accepted taxa overall for Phaseolus. Worldwide, World Flora Online includes 187 accepted species names and a further 21 scientific names of infraspecific rank for the genus.
In the Southwestern United States: Arizona has 7 species of Phaseolus, California and Utah each have 1 species, Nevada has 0 species, New Mexico has 6 species and Texas has 8 species. Data approximate, subject to revision.
Comments: Slimleaf Bean is a very close relative of the cultivated and wild Tepary Bean, Phaseolus acutifolius. It is interesting that the wild Tepary Bean also grows in Arizona, New Mexico and Texas and throughout Mexico.
The Arizona type species for Phaseolus angustissimus (recognized as variety latus), was collected along the Little Colorado River near Winslow, Navajo County (Jones, 1980). Unlike similar plants of the same genus, Slimleaf Bean may be differentiated by the fact that it is a perennial plant from woody rootstock.
Slimleaf Bean, Phaseolus angustissimus has attractive flowers, the flowers and their seeds may be visited by hummingbirds and/or small mammals including rodents and granivorous birds in search of nectar or food.
Beneficial Value to Butterflies, Honey Bees and Insects
Slimleaf Bean, Phaseolus angustissimus has attractive flowers, the flowers and their plants may be visited by butterflies, moths, flies, honeybees, Native Bees and other insects in search of food and nectar.
Etymology:
The genus “Phaseolus” is from the Ancient Greek word "phaselus" meaning a kind of bean with an edible pod.
Ethnobotany - Native American Ethnobotany; University of Michigan - Dearborn
Slimleaf Bean, Phaseolus angustissimus is used by southwestern United States indigenous peoples for such purposes described below.
Zuni Drug, Pediatric Aid, Crushed leaves, blossoms and powdered root rubbed on a child's body as a strengthener. When an infant boy showed signs of timidity, his father carried a small quantity of corn meal wrapped in a bit of corn husk to the warrior of his choice, presented it and asked that the warrior apply the medicine on his child's body so that he may have a brave heart and never be afraid of the enemy. The warrior then chewed the crushed leaves and blossoms and the powdered root, ejected the mass into his hands and rubbed it all over the child's body.
Zuni Drug, Strengthener, Crushed leaves, blossoms and powdered root rubbed on a child's body as a strengthener. When an infant boy showed signs of timidity, his father carried a small quantity of corn meal wrapped in a bit of corn husk to the warrior of his choice, presented it and asked that the warrior apply the medicine on his child's body so that he may have a brave heart and never be afraid of the enemy. The warrior then chewed the crushed leaves and blossoms and the powdered root, ejected the mass into his hands and rubbed it all over the child's body.
See complete listing of ethno-botanical uses at Native American Ethnobotany, University of Michigan, Dearborn.
