YIELD AND NUTRITIONAL CHARACTERISTICS OF EDIBLE CLUSTER BEAN GENOTYPES

Abstract

Cluster bean (Cyamopsis tetragonoloba (L.) Taub.) has various uses worldwide. Plants, also called as guar, are used in industry, animal feeding and green pods are used as fresh vegetable in some countries. This research is the first study in Turkey carried out about nutritional composition of edible cluster bean lines. Ten edible guar lines selected from mixed populations supplied from abroad through singlet selection between the years 2011-2015 under Çanakkale provincial conditions were experimented in this study. Green pod yield, yield components and nutritional attributes of 10 guar lines were investigated with field experiments conducted in two years (2016-2017). Statistical assessments were performed for green pod yield, number of pods per plant, single pod weight, pod length, pod width, crude protein, digestible protein and dry matter ratios. Green pod yields per plant varied between 63.70 - 81.34 g; number of pods per plant varied between 18.78 - 25.98. Although there were numerical differences in yields of harvests, such differences were not found to be significant. Single pod weights of the guar lines varied between 2.91 - 3.76 g and differences in single pod weights of the guar lines were found to be significant (p<0.01). Pod lengths varied between 10.86 -12.43 cm and pod widths varied between 1.31-1.32 cm and differences in pod length and pod widths of the guar lines were not found to be significant (p>0.01). Crude protein contents of guar lines varied between 14.38 - 17.22% DM and differences were not found to be significant; digestible protein contents varied between 65.40 - 75.25% CP and differences were found to be significant (p<0.01). Dry matter ratios of the green pods varied between 15.92 - 21.16% and the differences in dry matter ratios were not found to be significant (p<0.01). Considering the correlations among the investigated traits, it was observed that green pod yields had significant positive correlations with the number of pods per plant, pod weights and pod lengths (p<0.05). Pod weights decreased with increasing number of pods (p<0.01); decreasing dry matter ratios were observed with increasing pod weights and pod lengths. A similar change was also observed in digestible protein contents based on crude protein contents (p<0.05).