Plant Database / Vegetables / Edamame (Soybean)
Vegetables

Edamame (Soybean)

Glycine max
Fabaceae (Legume)

Vegetable soybeans picked young and steamed in the pod. Heat-tolerant protein that also feeds the soil.

EdibleAnnualFull sunFixes nitrogenSurvival crop
Edamame (Soybean) (Glycine max) illustration — Texas Roots plant database, by Jordan Polasek
Sun
Full sun
Water
Moderate
Soil
Average
pH
6.0-7.0
Hardiness
Warm-season annual
Height
2-3 ft
Spacing
4-6 in
Days to harvest
75-100

What it is

Edamame (Soybean) (Glycine max) is in the Fabaceae (Legume) family. Vegetable soybeans picked young and steamed in the pod. Heat-tolerant protein that also feeds the soil.

How to grow it

It wants full sun, water it moderate, and give it average soil. Target a soil pH around 6.0-7.0. Space plants about 4-6 in apart. Expect roughly 75-100. Warm-season annual.

How it's used

Edamame (Soybean) is used: steamed in pod; dry beans.

🔎 How to identify it

  • Three-leaflet fuzzy leaves
  • Small white/purple flowers
  • Fuzzy pods in clusters

Edibility

PartsSeeds (cooked)
UsesSteamed in pod; dry beans
CautionAlways cook; raw soybeans are not edible.
🌤 Before you plant: check the live 7-day garden weather to time it right for frost and heat.

Part of the free Texas Roots plant database, compiled by Jordan Polasek from his greenhouse in El Campo, Texas. Free to read and share. If it helped, the best thanks is to grow something.