• 12 parts
  • Checked September 2026

Parts of a Soybean Plant

A soybean plant from root nodules to flowers and pods, then a seedling.

Parts of a Soybean Plant

Name Date

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1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12
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Write the name of each numbered part.Answer key

  1. Main stem
  2. Trifoliolate leaf
  3. Leaflets
  4. Node
  5. Flowers
  6. Pods
  7. Seeds
  8. Roots
  9. Root nodules
  10. Cotyledons
  11. Unifoliolate leaves
  12. Hypocotyl

Drawn for this site on 2026-09-30 from plain geometry. Licence: own work.

Each numbered ring is a button. Use the arrow keys to move between them and Enter to choose. Names are read out in Study, and once a part is answered.

Next step Next: the parts of a flowering plant

All 12 parts on the diagram

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The plant 9

  1. Main stem Leaves, flowers and pods all grow from nodes on the main stem. Branches can grow from it too.
  2. Trifoliolate leaf One grows at each node, on alternate sides of the stem.
  3. Leaflets Their edges unroll and no longer touch. The leaf then counts as open.
  4. Node Growers count the nodes that carry open leaves. That names the plant's growth stage.
  5. Flowers Small clusters grow in the angle between a leaf and the stem. They are white, pink or purple.
  6. Pods Pods form where the flowers were. In one cluster, the pods nearest the stem are the most mature.
  7. Seeds The seeds are the soybeans. The scar where a seed was joined to the pod is called the hilum.
  8. Roots The first root grows straight down, and side roots branch from it.
  9. Root nodules Bacteria inside them take nitrogen from the air for the plant. A nodule that is working is pink or red inside.

The seedling 3

  1. Cotyledons They open above the soil. They feed the seedling for its first 7 to 10 days.
  2. Unifoliolate leaves They grow above the cotyledons. Every later leaf has three leaflets.
  3. Hypocotyl It comes up as a hook. It pulls the cotyledons out of the soil, then straightens.

How this list was compiled: Every name checked on 2026-09-30 against sources read that day: (1) University of Minnesota Extension, Soybean growth stages, https://extension.umn.edu/growing-soybean/soybean-growth-stages; (2) North Dakota State University Extension, Soybean Growth and Management Quick Guide, https://www.ndsu.edu/agriculture/extension/publications/soybean-growth-and-management-quick-guide; (3) Iowa State University Extension, Soybean Growth Stages, https://crops.extension.iastate.edu/soybean/production_growthstages.html; (4) Wikipedia, Soybean (text only); (5) OpenStax, Biology 2e, 31.3 Nutritional Adaptations of Plants, https://openstax.org/books/biology-2e/pages/31-3-nutritional-adaptations-of-plants. Each name on the page is used by at least two of them. Hints and detail lines are in our own words. Licence: own work

The drawing: Drawn for this site on 2026-09-30 from plain geometry; nothing traced or copied. Licence: own work

How it works

The first drawing is a soybean plant with flowers, pods and roots, with one leaf and one pod enlarged beside it. The second is a seedling just out of the soil.

Read the full guide

The plant first, then the seedling

Numbers 1 to 4 are the main stem, a trifoliolate leaf, its three leaflets and a node, the place where a leaf joins the stem. Numbers 5 to 7 are the flowers, the pods and the seeds. Numbers 8 and 9 are the roots and their nodules. Numbers 10 to 12 are on the seedling: the cotyledons, the two unifoliolate leaves and the hypocotyl.

  • A soybean's first two leaves are single blades, opposite each other. Every leaf after them has three leaflets.
  • Growers count the nodes with open leaves to name a plant's growth stage.

Questions and answers

What are the parts of a soybean plant?

Roots with nodules, a main stem with nodes, leaves, flowers, pods and seeds. Each leaf has three leaflets. A seedling also shows its cotyledons, its two single first leaves and the hypocotyl, the stem below the cotyledons.

What are the bumps on soybean roots?

They are root nodules. Bacteria live inside them and take nitrogen from the air, and the plant uses it to grow. A nodule that is doing this work is pink or red inside.

What is a trifoliolate leaf?

A leaf made of three leaflets on one stalk. Every soybean leaf is trifoliolate except the first pair, the unifoliolate leaves, which are single blades.

What are the cotyledons of a soybean?

They are the two seed leaves. The hypocotyl brings them out of the soil, they open, and they feed the seedling for its first 7 to 10 days.

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