erect bushy hairy annual herb having trifoliate leaves and purple to pink flowers; extensively cultivated for food and forage and soil improvement but especially for its nutritious oil-rich seeds; native to Asia
"The farmer planted rows of soybeans in the field, relying on their deep roots to improve the soil while waiting for the purple flowers to bloom before harvest."
the most highly proteinaceous vegetable known; the fruit of the soybean plant is used in a variety of foods and as fodder (especially as a replacement for animal protein)
"After adding extra soybeans to our livestock feed, the cattle have gained significant weight thanks to their high protein content."
A legume plant (Glycine max), commonly cultivated for human and animal consumption and as a nitrogen-fixing ground cover.
"Farmers rotate their crops with soybeans not just to harvest beans for food, but because the plants naturally enrich the soil by fixing nitrogen."