Grain Legume Species Research Articles

Grain Legumes Diversity of Indian National Genebank: A Potential Resource for Food and Nutritional Security

In the INGB (Indian National Genebank), a total of 66,283 accessions belonging to 15 genera of 98 species of grain legumes are conserved, which includes 55,757 indigenous collections and 10,526 exotic collections. Many novel and unique traits have been identified in the conserved germplasm including resistance to major pests and disease, agronomic and nutritional value. Conserved legume genetic resources have the potential to mitigate future climate change and revolutionize the legume breeding programme.

Peer-Reviewed Literature on Grain Legume Species in the WoS (1980–2018): A Comparative Analysis of Soybean and Pulses

Grain-legume crops are important for ensuring the sustainability of agrofood systems. Among them, pulse production is subject to strong lock-in compared to soya, the leading worldwide crop. To unlock the situation and foster more grain-legume crop diversity, scientific research is essential for providing new knowledge that may lead to new development. Our study aimed to evaluate whether research activity on grain-legumes is also locked in favor of soya. Considering more than 80 names grouped into 19 main grain-legume species, we built a dataset of 107,823 scholarly publications (articles, book, and book chapters) between 1980 and 2018 retrieved from the Web of Science (Clarivate Analytics) reflecting the research activity on grain-legumes. We delineated 10 scientific themes of interest running the gamut of agrofood research (e.g., genetics, agronomy, and nutrition). We indexed grain-legume species, calculated the percentage of records for each one, and conducted several analyses longitudinally and by country. Globally, we found an unbalanced research output: soya remains the main crop studied, even in the promising field of food sciences advanced by FAO as the “future of pulses”. Our results raise questions about how to align research priorities with societal demand for more crop diversity.

SPECIES DIVERSITY OF THE VIR COLLECTION OF GRAIN LEGUME GENETIC RESOURCES AND ITS USE IN DOMESTIC BREEDING

The world’s genebanks hold 7.5 million germplasm accessions of plant genetic resources (PGR). One of the qualitative characteristics of the PGR collections is the species diversity, in particular, the presence of crop wild relatives (CWR), which makes it possible to widen the use of gene pools in the breeding process. The collection of the Vavilov Institute (VIR) is one of the most diverse holdings in the number of plant species. A survey is provided here of the species diversity in VIR’s grain legume collection, and its use in domestic breeding practice is analyzed. Comparison of this diversity with the state of PGR exploitation in the world makes it possible to assess the prospects of more efficient utilization of gene pool potential, especially for species that are unjustifiably cultivated on a too small scale or even neglected as crops in this country. The VIR collection of grain legumes incorporates 196 species from 9 genera of the family Fabaceae. This number includes cultigens and CWR. The cultivars of 21 species of grain legumes listed in the State Register of Breeding Achievements (2018) are adapted to the soil and climate conditions of this country. However, the species diversity of the collection could be used more efficiently in domestic plant breeding and crop production. This concerns both underutilized crops in Russia (broad beans, lima beans and grass pea) and those whose adaptive potential is adjusted only to certain and limited areas of the Russian Federation (Tepary beans and Vigna spp.). It is also necessary to exploit more efficiently species of the wild flora, both for direct utilization as pastures, green manure or phytoremediation crops and for introgressive breeding and domestication (Vicia benghalensis L., V. narbonensis L., Lathyrus sylvestris L., Lupinus hartwegii Lindl., etc.). Incorporation of crop wild relatives into the breeding process is promising for crop improvement in a number of aspects: for example, to increase resistance to diseases, pests, abiotic stressors, etc.

Socio-technical lock-in hinders crop diversification in France

Crop diversification is considered as a major lever to increase the sustainability of arable farming systems, allowing reduced inputs (irrigation water, pesticides, fertilizers), increasing the heterogeneity of habitat mosaics, or reducing yield gap associated with too frequent returns of the same species. To free up paths of collective action, this article highlights obstacles to crop diversification, existing at various levels of the value chains. We used a threefold approach: (i) a cross-cutting analysis of impediments to the development of 11 diversifying crops (5 species of grain legumes, alfalfa, flax, hemp, linseed, mustard, sorghum), based on published documents and on 30 interviews of stakeholders in French value chains; (ii) a detailed study (55 semi-structured surveys, including 39 farmers) of three value chains: pea and linseed for animal feed, hemp for insulation and biomaterials; and (iii) a bibliometric analysis of the technical journals and websites (180 articles) to characterize the nature of information diffused to farmers. We highlight that the development of minor crops is hindered by a socio-technical lock-in in favor of the dominant species (wheat, rapeseed, maize, etc.). We show for the first time that this lock-in is characterized by strongly interconnected impediments, occurring at every link of the value chains, such as lack of availability of improved varieties and methods of plant protection, scarcity of quantified references on crop successions, complexity of the knowledge to be acquired by farmers, logistical constraints to harvest collection, and difficulties of coordination within the emerging value chains. On the basis of this lock-in analysis, that could concern other European countries, the article proposes levers aimed at encouraging actors to incorporate a greater diversity of crops into their productive systems: adaptation of standards and labelling, better coordination between stakeholders to fairly share added value within value chains, and combination of genetic, agronomic, technological, and organizational innovations.

High diversity of Bradyrhizobium strains isolated from several legume species and land uses in Brazilian tropical ecosystems

The genus Bradyrhizobium stands out among nitrogen-fixing legume-nodulating bacteria because it predominates among the efficient microsymbionts of forest, forage, and green manure legume species, as well as important species of grain legumes, such as soybean, cowpea, and peanut. Therefore, the diversity of Bradyrhizobium strains is a relevant resource from environmental and economic perspectives, and strains isolated from diverse legume species and land uses in Brazilian tropical ecosystems were assessed in this study. To accomplish this, sequences of four housekeeping genes (atpD, dnaK, gyrB, and recA) were individually analysed, with the first three also being considered using multilocus sequence analysis (MLSA). The sensitivity of the strains to different antibiotics, their tolerance to different levels of salinity, and their ability to nodulate soybean plants were also measured. The phylogenetic trees based on each individual gene, and on the concatenated housekeeping genes, revealed several strain clusters separated from any currently described species. The Bradyrhizobium strains studied were generally resistant to antibiotics. All strains were able to grow at salinity levels of up to 0.5% NaCl, whereas only strains UFLA03-142, UFLA03-143, UFLA03-145, and UFLA03-146 grew in the presence of 1% NaCl. Together, the results indicated that some of the strains studied were potential novel species, indicating that the various soils and ecosystems in Brazil may harbour an as yet unknown diversity of rhizobia.

Erwinia persicina, a possible new necrosis and wilt threat to forage or grain legumes production

Erwinia persicina (Ep) is a phytopathogenic bacteria found on Medicago sativa, Glycine max, Phaseolus vulgaris and Pisum sativum. It has also been isolated from healthy tomato, cucumber, banana, apple and pear, as well as the human urinary tract and biofilms located on paleolithic rock paintings. The host range and environmental adaptation capacity of Ep, and its life cycle on the lucerne plant, was studied. It was found that an Ep infection, which could be transmitted by seeds, water, and soil, caused necrosis and wilting of the whole mature lucerne plant. Subsequently, 15 genera and 22 species of forage or grain legumes were chosen to determine the pathogenicity of Ep. Among them were 11 genera and 19 species (e.g., Vigna angularis, Arachis hypogaea, Onobrychis viciaefolia, Astragalus adsurgens, etc.) reported as new hosts. The environmental adaptation capacity of Ep indicated its probable survival within a wide range of environmental conditions and an ability to endure arid, saline and alkaline environments. Based on the results of the life cycle, host range and environmental adaptation capacity of Ep, it was concluded that Ep could pose a new threat to forage or grain legumes production within farming systems.

Soil phosphorus—crop response calibration relationships and criteria for oilseeds, grain legumes and summer cereal crops grown in Australia

Australian cropping systems are dominated by winter cereals; however, grain legumes, oilseeds and summer cereals play an important role as break crops. Inputs of phosphorus (P) fertiliser account for a significant proportion of farm expenditure on crop nutrition, so effective fertiliser-use guidelines are essential. A national database (BFDC National Database) of field experiments examining yield responses to P fertiliser application has been established. This paper reports the results of interrogating that database using a web application (BFDC Interrogator) to develop calibration relationships between soil P test (0–10 cm depth; Colwell NaHCO3 extraction) and relative grain yield. Relationships have been developed for all available data for each crop species, as well as for subsets of those data derived by filtering processes based on experiment quality, presence of abiotic or biotic stressors, P fertiliser placement strategy and subsurface P status. The available dataset contains >730 entries but is dominated by data for lupin (Lupinus angustifolius; 62% of all P experiments) from the south-west of Western Australia. The number of treatment series able to be analysed for other crop species was quite small (<50–60 treatment series) and available data were sometimes from geographic regions or soil types no longer reflective of current production. There is a need for research to improve information on P fertiliser use for key species of grain legumes [faba bean (Vicia faba), lentil (Lens culinaris), chickpea (Cicer arietinum)], oilseeds [canola (Brassica napus), soybean (Glycine max)] and summer cereals [sorghum (Sorghum bicolor), maize (Zea mays)] in soils and farming systems reflecting current production. Interrogations highlighted the importance of quantifying subsurface P reserves to predict P fertiliser response, with consistently higher 0–10 cm soil test values required to achieve 90% maximum yield (CV90) when subsurface P was low (<5 mg P/kg). This was recorded for lupin, canola and wheat (Triticum aestivum). Crops grown on soils with subsurface P >5 mg/kg consistently produced higher relative yields than expected on the basis of a 0–10 cm soil test. The lupin dataset illustrated the impact of improving crop yield potentials (through more effective P-fertiliser placement) on critical soil test values. The higher yield potentials arising from placement of P-fertiliser bands deeper in the soil profile resulted in significantly higher CV90 values than for crops grown on the same sites but using less effective (shallower) P placement. This is consistent with deeper bands providing an increased and more accessible volume of profile P enrichment and supports the observation of the importance of crop P supply from soil layers deeper than 0–10 cm. Soil P requirements for different species were benchmarked against values determined for wheat or barley (Hordeum vulgare) grown in the same regions and/or soil types as a way of extrapolating available data for less researched species. This approach suggested most species had CV90 values and ranges similar to winter cereals, with evidence of different soil P requirements in only peanut (Arachis hypogaea – much lower) and field pea (Pisum sativum – slightly higher). Unfortunately, sorghum data were so limited that benchmarking against wheat was inconclusive.

Stability of the Nitrogen Concentration of Inoculated White Lupins during Pod Development

The general pattern of decrease of the 'critical' plant N concentration (i.e. minimum concentration required for maximum growth rate) during growth has been described for several C3 non grain-legume species, and this can be used as a reference curve for diagnosis of N nutrition in these species. The present study was undertaken to investigate changes of N concentration during growth of a grain legume, in different conditions of N nutrition. White lupin (Lupinus albus L.) was grown for six crop seasons in field trials in which inoculation with Rhizobium lupini, nitrogen fertilizer rate, cultivar and plant density were density were manipulated. The yield and dry matter production of noninoculated plants were lower than, or at the best similar to, those of inoculated plants, whatever the level of N supply. From anthesis to the beginning of seed filling, the N concentration of shoots of inoculated plants was found to be remarkably stable between years, N fertilization regimes, cultivars, and for individual plants within a plot. Nitrogen concentration only varied with plant density. By contrast, the N concentration of noninoculated plants was highly variable and generally lower than that of inoculated plants, whatever the level of N supply. The high and stable N concentration of inoculated plants did not appear to be necessary for maximum growth rate but seemed to be required for maximum production of seed dry matter and N. The potential use of these results to diagnose, in any white lupin crop, an inefficiency of the lupin-R. lupini interaction is evaluated.

Effects of field slope and duration of furrow irrigation on growth and yield of six grain-legumes on a waterlogging-prone vertisol

The effects of field slope and duration of furrow irrigation on the growth and yield of six grain-legume species were compared on a waterlogging-prone Vertisol (Typic Pellustert) at Narrabri, N.S.W., Australia. The species were soybean ( Glycine max L.) Merr.), navy bean ( Phaseolus vulgaris L.), pigeon pea ( Cajanus cajan (L.) Millsp.), adzuki bean ( Vigna angularis (Willd.) Ohwi and Ohashi), cowpea ( V. unguiculata (L.) Walp.) and mung bean ( V. radiata L.). Field slopes of 1:500, 1:1000, 1: 1500 and 1:2000 were factorially combined with durations of furrow irrigation of 4, 16 and 32 h irrigation −1 in order to vary the severity of waterlogging and assess the relative sensitivities of the six species. Treatments were applied at each of four irrigations. Growth of all species was reduced by increasing the duration of irrigation at the first irrigation, but the more tolerant species became less affected as they developed. Grain-yields of soybean (2.41 t ha −), and cowpea (1.72 t ha −1) were not significantly affected by treatments. However, increasing the duration of irrigation from 4 or 16 h to 32 h reduced the yield of pigeon pea and mung bean by 12%, adzuki bean by 15% and navy bean by 45%. The last four species yielded 2.03, 1.90, 1.14 and 1.18 t ha −1, respectively, at the optimum field slope (1:1000) and duration of irrigation (4 or 16 h). Nitrogen uptake in the harvested grain of soybean (122 kg ha −1) was 2–5 times that of the other species. Reductions in the concentration and uptake of nitrogen of affected species implied that nitrogen fixation or nutrient absorption were inhibited by waterlogging. The study demonstrated that in a semi-arid, sub-tropical environment, a field designed and managed to ensure adequate drainage of excess irrigation water can restrict waterlogging to a period of 1–2 days per irrigation in the surface 0–0.2 m of cropped ridges, enabling sensitive species to survive, grow and produce appreciable quantities of grain.

The Rate of Morphogenesis of Embryos and Seeds in Four Species of Grain Legumes

Comparative embryo development has been studied histologically in Lupinus albus , Lupinus mutabilis , Vicia faba , Pisum sativum and Lathyrus latifolius. The detailed histology of the stages of embryo formation up to the early differentiation of tissues of the seed is reported. The rate of embryogenesis has been timed through 15 stages of development from anthesis and comparative rates of tissue formation established between the species. The main observation was the slow rate of morphogenesis of embryos and seeds in Lupinus albus in comparison with the very rapid rate observed in Pisum sativum. A long period at the globular embryo stage, when embryo morphogenesis was inactive contributed to the extended development time of embryos and seeds in Lupinus albus. Slow differentiation of reproductive tissues in L. albus determines late maturity in seeds and pods.

Author Index

The effects of field slope and duration of furrow irrigation on the growth and yield of six grain-legume species were compared on a waterlogging-prone Vertisol (Typic Pellustert) at Narrabri, N.S.W., Australia. The species were soybean (Glycine max L.) Merr.), navy bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.), pigeon pea (Cajanus cajan (L.) Millsp.), adzuki bean (Vigna angularis (Willd.) Ohwi and Ohashi), cowpea (V. unguiculata (L.) Walp.) and mung bean (V. radiata L.). Field slopes of 1:500, 1:1000, 1: 1500 and 1:2000 were factorially combined with durations of furrow irrigation of 4, 16 and 32 h irrigation−1 in order to vary the severity of waterlogging and assess the relative sensitivities of the six species. Treatments were applied at each of four irrigations.Growth of all species was reduced by increasing the duration of irrigation at the first irrigation, but the more tolerant species became less affected as they developed. Grain-yields of soybean (2.41 t ha−), and cowpea (1.72 t ha−1) were not significantly affected by treatments. However, increasing the duration of irrigation from 4 or 16 h to 32 h reduced the yield of pigeon pea and mung bean by 12%, adzuki bean by 15% and navy bean by 45%. The last four species yielded 2.03, 1.90, 1.14 and 1.18 t ha−1, respectively, at the optimum field slope (1:1000) and duration of irrigation (4 or 16 h). Nitrogen uptake in the harvested grain of soybean (122 kg ha−1) was 2–5 times that of the other species. Reductions in the concentration and uptake of nitrogen of affected species implied that nitrogen fixation or nutrient absorption were inhibited by waterlogging.The study demonstrated that in a semi-arid, sub-tropical environment, a field designed and managed to ensure adequate drainage of excess irrigation water can restrict waterlogging to a period of 1–2 days per irrigation in the surface 0–0.2 m of cropped ridges, enabling sensitive species to survive, grow and produce appreciable quantities of grain.

Internodes of grain legumes ? New location for xylem parenchyma transfer cells

Xylem parenchyma transfer cells were observed in the primary and secondary vascular tissue of stem internodes of 21 in 28 species of grain legumes. Their structural features were similar to those of other transfer cells. The relationships of these cells to transfer cells at nodes were investigated. Non-nodulated seedlings ofPhaseolus vulgaris L. formed internode transfer cells if provided mineral nutrients through their roots, but not if grown in distilled water or fed nutrients entirely through their leaves. Wall ingrowths formed in parenchyma of primary xylem ofPhaseolus just before full extension of an internode. The significance of this new location for transfer cells was discussed.

Performance of Winged Bean (Psophocarpus Tetragonolobus(L.) DC.) in Nigeria

SummaryWinged beans were grown at Ibadan (sub-humid) and Onne (humid) under different management practices. The plants took about 11 days to emerge from the soil but this period could be shortened by soaking the seed in water or pregermination prior to sowing provided the soil was moist at planting. Staking (minimum 1 m) was essential for high yields and a woody legume, Leucaena leucocephala, could replace trellis, and also improved seedling emergence and soil fertility. All cultivars tested at Ibadan showed a delay of about 30 days in flowering when planted in April compared with September. At Ibadan yields up to 2400 kg ha-1 or 11 kg ha-1 d-1 were obtained, but soybean outyielded winged bean. At Onne winged bean was the most promising among six species of grain legumes with respect to nodulation, pest and disease resistance, resistance to field weathering and yield.

Origin, ethnobotany and agricultural potential of the winged bean—Psophocarpus tetragonolobus

According to Roberts (62) about 20 species of grain legumes are used in appreciable quantities in the human diet. These grain legumes are excellent sources of dietary protein and are expected to play a vital role in meeting the food needs of future generations of man. The top six grain legume crops in terms of production are the soybean, peanut, dry bean, chickpea, pigeon pea, and cowpea. In addition to the major grain legumes there are numerous minor grain legumes which have thus far received scant attention from the scientific community. Among these minor grain legumes is Psophocarpus tetragonolobus (L.) DC, or the winged bean. This paper will attempt to present the evidence as to the possible origin of the winged bean and to evaluate the agricultural potential of the species by bringing together the limited ethnobotanical, historical, and agronomic literature.

Photomorphogenetic effects of lamp type on growth of some species of tropical grain legumes in controlled environment growth cabinets

The effects on vegetative growth and flowering of selected cultivars of four species of potentially tropic-adapted grain legumes were investigated in controlled environment growth cabinets using three commercially available fluorescent lamp types, either alone or supplemented with tungsten lamps. Although the practical aspects of producing tropical grain legumes in controlled environments which closely resemble plants grown in the field were the main concern of this investigation, the results clearly show the need to consider the responses not just of different species but of different cultivars. Mean specific leaf area, number of main stem nodes and mean internode length were recorded within 2 days of the onset of flowering in respective cultivars and were used as indices of leaf expansion and plant stature, respectively. Accordingly, photomorphogenetic effects due to the various lamp types were assessed and the most suitable light regime for respective cultivars — of those so far investigated — was determined. It is clearly possible to extend further the range of cultivars and species of tropical grain legumes which can be studied in controlled environments.