Legume Production Research Articles

Phyto-interactive impact of green synthesized iron oxide nanoparticles and Rhizobium pusense on morpho-physiological and yield components of greengram

The iron oxide nanoparticles (IONPs) prepared by green synthesis method using Syzigium cumini leaf extract was characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The XRD confirmed the crystalline structure of green synthesized NPs measuring around 33 nm while SEM revealed its nearly spherical shape. Rhizobium species recovered from greengram nodules, identified by 16s rRNA gene sequencing as Rhizobium pusense produced 30% more exopolysaccharides (EPS) in basal medium treated with 1000 μg IONPs/ml. Compositional variation in EPS was observed by Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). There was no reduction in rhizobial viability and no damage to bacterial membrane was observed under SEM and confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM), respectively. Effects of IONPs and R. pusense, used alone and in combination on the growth and development of greengram plants varied considerably. Plants grown with IONPs and R. pusence, used alone and in combination, showed a significant increase in seed germination rate, length and dry biomass of plant organs and seed components compared to controls. The IONPs in the presence of rhizobial strain further increased seed germination, plant growth, seed protein and pigments. Greater protein content (442 mg/g) was observed in seeds at 250 mg/kg of IONPs compared to control. Plants raised with mixture of IONPs plus R. pusense had maximum chlorophyll content (39.2 mg/g FW) while proline content decreased by 53% relative to controls. This study confirms that the green synthesis of IONPs from S. cumini leaf possess useful plant growth promoting effects and could be developed as a nano-biofertilizer for optimizing legume production.

Rhodospirillum sp. JY3: An innovative tool to mitigate the phytotoxic impact of galaxolide on wheat (Triticum aestivum) and faba bean (Vicia faba) plants.

To date, several studies have considered the phytotoxic impact of cosmetics and personal care products on crop plants. Nonetheless, data are scarce about the toxic impact of galaxolide [hexahydro-hexamethyl cyclopentabenzopyran (HHCB)] on the growth, physiology, and biochemistry of plants from different functional groups. To this end, the impact of HHCB on biomass, photosynthetic efficiency, antioxidant production, and detoxification metabolism of grass (wheat) and legume (faba bean) plants has been investigated. On the other hand, plant growth-promoting bacteria (PGPB) can be effectively applied to reduce HHCB phytotoxicity. HHCB significantly reduced the biomass accumulation and the photosynthetic machinery of both crops, but to more extent for wheat. This growth reduction was concomitant with induced oxidative damage and decreased antioxidant defense system. To mitigate HHCB toxicity, a bioactive strain of diazotrophic plant growth-promoting Rhodospirillum sp. JY3 was isolated from heavy metal-contaminated soil in Jazan, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and applied to both crops. Overall, Rhodospirillum mitigated HHCB-induced stress by differently modulating the oxidative burst [malondialdehyde (MDA), hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), and protein oxidation] in both wheat and faba beans. This alleviation was coincident with improvement in plant biomass and photosynthetic efficiency, particularly in wheat crops. Considering the antioxidant defense system, JY3 augmented the antioxidants in both wheat and faba beans and the detoxification metabolism under HHCB stress conditions. More interestingly, inoculation with JY3 further enhanced the tolerance level of both wheat and faba beans against contamination with HHCB via quenching the lignin metabolism. Overall, this study advanced our understanding of the physiological and biochemical mechanisms underlying HHCB stress and mitigating its impact using Rhodospirillum sp. JY3, which may strikingly reduce the environmental risks on agriculture sustainability.

Legumes in a sustainable healthy diet: (How) to be or not to be, that is the question

One of the staple foods in a healthy and sustainable diet is legumes. As such, new dietary guidelines around the globe now include higher intakes of legumes. For example, the most recent Danish dietary guidelines recommend a daily intake of 100 g of cooked legumes. This is, however, far from current intakes. The question is then, how should legumes be (or not be) designed to enable this grand dietary transition necessary to contribute to current global sustainability goals? One option has been to produce legume-based meat alternatives. But is this the only way to go? In this opinion, we debate this solution. We outline the processing, health and climate aspect of legume product consumption and argue that we do not have the right information to be able to appropriately design future legume-based foods. We conclude that processing must be part of the solution as we also need to replace red meat with legumes and re-design traditional meals to include legumes or legume products. Finally, to create the necessary lasting impact for planetary and population health, further dimensions such as food culture, equitability and affordability should also be in focus.

Exploiting the resource-ratio (R*) hypothesis for weed management in legume crops: An example of volunteer Brassica napus in soybean

Poor competitive ability and sensitivity to many herbicides create challenges for weed management in legume production. The resource-ratio (R*) hypothesis may provide insight into how to manipulate the competitive balance between nitrogen (N)-fixing legume crops and non-leguminous weed species. A field study was conducted to test whether the level of soil mineral N affected yield loss of an annual legume crop, soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.], in the presence of four different populations of an interfering non-leguminous weed, volunteer canola (Brassica napus L.), compared with a weed-free control. The experiment consisted of banding five rates of urea fertilizer (0–180 kg N ha-1) prior to seeding soybean and volunteer canola, and was repeated in three environments in Manitoba, Canada. Soybean yield remained unaffected by N rate in the absence of volunteer canola. Interference from the volunteer canola populations caused a linear decline in soybean yield by 2.6 kg ha-1 for every 1 kg ha-1 increase in soil mineral N. In the presence of volunteer canola, soybean yield decreased by 17% from the lowest to the highest soil mineral N. In the lowest-N conditions (30 kg residual-N ha-1), soybean yield was greatest (3,350 kg ha-1) and volunteer canola seed production and aboveground biomass were lowest (decline in canola seed production by 19%, 50%, and 74% of the maximum seed production in the 2015i, 2015ii, and 2016 environments, respectively). Therefore, growing legume crops like soybean on fields with lower soil mineral N may reduce interference from unmanaged non-leguminous weeds. As N fertilization intensifies interference of many weed species, tailoring weed management in legume crops around their capacity for N-fixation could provide the crop with a competitive advantage, thereby minimizing the impact of weed interference on legume crop yield.

The range and nutrient profile of alternative protein products sold in Australian supermarkets between 2014 and 2021

The purpose of this study was to investigate changes in the range and nutrient profile of processed alternative protein “convenience” products available in Australia from 2014 to 2021. Product data were extracted from FoodTrack™, an established database of packaged supermarket products. Eligible products were grouped into subcategories: (i) tofu products; (ii) legume products; and (iii) plant-based meats. Nutrient composition was assessed from the products’ nutrition information panel. The number of alternative protein products in supermarkets more than doubled between 2014 and 2021 (+130%). On average, products were available for 2.2 years (range 1–7 years). Generally, tofu products had the highest contents of saturated fat and sodium, legume products had the highest contents of carbohydrates, sugar and fibre, and plant-based meats had the highest contents of protein and total fat (per 100 g). This study found large variation in the nutrient composition of these products, highlighting the importance of reformulation and consumer education in the future.

Performance of Diversified Legume Entailing Ultra High Intensity Rice based Cropping System Models for Higher Productivity, Profitability and Sustainability

Background: An intensive cropping system involving legume and vegetable crops not only highly productive and profitable but should also be stable over time and maintains soil health in present scenario. So, keeping this point in view the present investigation was carried out to evaluate the productivity, profitability and sustainability of legume entailing different ultra high intensity rice based cropping system models under irrigated sub-tropics. Methods: The field experiment was conducted at Research Farm, SKUAST-Jammu, Main Campus, Chatha for two consecutive years from kharif 2019 to summer season of 2021. The experiment consisting of five legume entailing rice based cropping system models of cropping intensity varying from 300-600% viz. T1: Rice (Basmati-370) - Wheat (HD-3086) - Cowpea (Lobia Super-60) having 300% cropping intensity, T2: Rice (Basmati-564) - Potato (Kufri Badshah) - Wheat (Raj-3765) - Mixed fodder (Maize+Cowpea+Charri in 2:2:1 ratio) having 400% cropping intensity, T3: Rice (SJR-129) - Knol khol (G-40) - Potato (Kufri Sindhuri) - Green gram (IPM 02-3) having 400% cropping intensity, T4: Rice (Pusa-1121) - Radish (CR-45) - Green onion (Nasik Red) - French bean (Anupama) - Okra (Seli special) having 500% cropping intensity in relay cropping from fourth crop onwards and T5: Rice (IET-1410) - Fenugreek (JF-07) - Knol khol (G-40) - Green onion (Nasik Red) - Dry onion (Selection-1) - Black gram (Pant U-19) having 600% cropping intensity in relay cropping from third crop onwards was laid out in a randomized block design with four replications. Result: The results obtained under two years research study revealed that treatment T4 recorded significantly highest basmati-370 rice equivalent system productivity followed by treatment T5. Further, treatment T4 also recorded highest system cost of cultivation, system gross returns and system net returns. System soil fertility status in terms of available NPK after completion of second crop cycle was significantly affected. Among different cropping systems, significantly higher available nitrogen and phosphorus were recorded in treatment T5 system which was at par with treatment T4.

Habitat suitability and dispersal of invasive Striga species under climate change in Africa

AbstractStriga species are highly invasive annual parasitic plants posing significant economic losses to the production of cereal grains and legumes in Africa. There is no explicit knowledge about the potential distribution of some important Striga species in Africa. In this study, we used the Maximum Entropy modelling algorithm (MaxEnt 3.4) to identify the bioclimatic variables that best explain the current geographic distribution of the three most aggressive Striga species in Africa. Present‐day climatically suitable areas were estimated at 14.53 million km2 (S. asiatica), 14.89 million km2 (S. hermonthica) and 12.13 million km2 (S. generioides), amounting to about 48%, 49% and 60% of the climatic space in Africa, respectively. Approximately, 11 million km2 were identified as stable and suitable across present and future periods for S. hermonthica, compared with 9 and 6 million km2 for S. asiatica and S. gesnerioides, respectively. Model projections showed that none of the study species would be able to disperse across much of northern and southern Africa. Striga hermonthica had the highest proportion (3.4%–9.3%) of colonised areas after dispersal simulations. The three Strigas predicted to be invasive in the tropical rainforest and tropical savannah of Africa. Breeding of polyploid Striga which causes sterility is considered as an alternative biological control to its spread.

Immediate and residual-effects of sole and intercropped grain legumes in maize production systems under rain-fed conditions of Northern Tanzania

Intercropping of maize with grain-legume crops predominates on smallholder farms in East Africa. However, the growth and development of crops and their interaction with fertilizer in intercropping systems are not well understood. We sought to answer the questions: (i) what are the effects of fertilizer on the growth and development of maize-pigeonpea and maize-lablab intercropping systems under variable agroecological conditions? (ii) what are the residual effects of two seasons of sole and intercrops of maize, pigeonpea and lablab on a succeeding maize crop? We studied pure stands of maize, long-duration pigeonpea, medium-duration pigeonpea and lablab, and additive intercropping combinations on eight farms in Babati, Tanzania. The intercropping combinations studied were: maize with long-duration pigeonpea, maize with medium-duration pigeonpea and maize with lablab. Three fertilizer levels were applied: no fertilizer; 40 kg P ha −1 ; and 90 kg N ha −1 + 40 kg P ha −1 . The P was applied at planting in the form of triple superphosphate to both maize and legumes, thus in intercrops the 40 kg P ha −1 was shared between maize and legume. The N was spot-applied in the form of urea in three equal splits, only on maize. The trials were implemented for two consecutive cropping seasons (2017/2018 and 2018/2019), without changing treatments and plot locations. To evaluate the residual effect of grain legumes, we planted a sole crop of maize in the third season (2019/2020) in all plots, with no addition of fertilizer. Maize and pigeonpea were sown simultaneously, while lablab was relay-planted one month after maize. Maize dry matter (DM) and grain yield were not significantly affected by the presence of legumes, but were about twice as large in 2017/2018 as in 2018/2019 season, likely due to the considerably higher rainfall in the 2017/2018 season. Legume productivity was more consistent across the two seasons. Legume crops in the intercrops produced significantly less DM and grain yield than in their respective pure stands, but maize yield did not differ significantly between sole and intercrops. The productivity of maize was significantly increased by N fertilization, but the legumes responded positively only to P fertilizer in the 2017/2018 season. Land-equivalent and area-time-equivalent ratios of intercropping systems were consistently greater than one. The DM and grain yield of maize following two seasons of legumes was consistently larger than in plots where maize was grown continuously. The P-fertilizer applied in the preceding seasons had significant residual effects on the yield of the succeeding maize crop. The temporal niche complementarity of pigeonpea and lablab with maize minimized competition in the intercrops, although intercrops are clearly more demanding in labor at planting and harvest. Overall, our results showed the superior performance of maize-legume intercropping over sole maize, both in terms of additional grain yield within a season and the residual effects in the succeeding season. We did not observe biotic constraints in the succeeding maize crop. Maize-legume intercropping with fertilizer application was effective in enhancing the productivity of smallholder cropping systems.

Practice of intercropping and its impact on legume productivity in Egypt

Practice of intercropping and its impact on legume productivity in Egypt

Prospects of rhizobial inoculant technology on Bambara groundnut crop production and growth

After peanuts and cowpeas (Vigna unguiculata), the Bambara groundnut (Vigna subterranea (L.) Verdc) is the third most significant food legume in Africa. It is characteristically grown in marginal soils, is drought tolerant, and also has the potential for nitrogen fixation. Despite that, year-on-year Bambara groundnut yields are on a gradual decline due to a combination of abiotic and biotic stresses such as uneven annual rainfall and climate-induced changes in soil microbial community compositions, negatively impacting food security. Thus, the application of rhizobial inoculants at planting significantly improves yields in many leguminous crops. Moreover, symbiotic inoculants are well established in developed countries for improving nitrogen fixation and productivity in grain legumes. Sub-Saharan African countries, however, still under-utilise the above practice. In crop production, nitrogen (N) is the most frequently deficient nutrient since it stimulates root and shoots growth. Whereas nitrogen fertilisers can be used to supplement soil N levels, they are, however, also costly, at times inadequate, may not be timely in supply and may have deleterious environmental consequences. Hence, rhizobial inoculants are seen as a cheaper, easier, and safer method for improving N-fixation and crop productivity in grain legumes, as a result, smallholder farming systems are food secure. Thus, identifying the most efficient rhizobial strains for biofertiliser production for Bambara groundnut is of utmost importance to the farming communities.

Effect of Maize–Legume Intercropping on Maize Physio-Agronomic Parameters and Beneficial Insect Abundance

In developing countries, intercropping is commonly used to boost land productivity and agricultural benefits. However, in the Yucatan region of Mexico, maize (Zea mays L.) yields remain low, despite consistent fertilizer and pesticide inputs in traditional intercropping systems. Furthermore, little is known about the photosynthetic mechanisms that occur when maize plants interact with legumes, and there is a lack of understanding of how intercropping systems affect other organisms in the system, such as beneficial and insect pest population dynamics. A field experiment was carried out on the Yucatan Peninsula in 2021 to assess the impact of maize–legume intercropping systems on maize yield, physiological characteristics as evaluated by gas exchange measurements, and the abundance of beneficial insects in traditional and novel maize intercropping systems. The experiment was carried out with a randomized complete block design with three replicates. Treatments included maize intercropped with a novel legume, crotalaria (Crotalaria juncea L.), maize intercropped with a traditional legume, cowpea (Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walp.), and sole maize as a control. Significant differences in plant height were shown at growth stages V12 (45 days after sowing) and VT (60 days after sowing). No differences were observed in stem diameter, leaf area index, or chlorophyll content. The maize/cowpea intercrop increased the photosynthesis rate by 12.9% and 9.84% in the maize/crotalaria and sole maize, respectively (p < 0.001), and transpiration rate by 6.5% and 8.5% in the maize intercropped with crotalaria and sole maize treatments, respectively (p < 0.001), of maize plants. No significant effects on stomatal conductance or water use efficiency were observed, but the carbon intercellular rate was reduced by 9.74% and 9.15 when compared to the maize/crotalaria and the sole maize treatments, respectively. Overall, intercropping treatments attracted more beneficial insects than sole maize. For predators, the families that stood out were Coccinelidae, Formicidae, Araneidae, Thomisidae, Syrphidae, Chrysomelidae, Oxypidae, Vespidae, Reduviidae, Carabidae, Asilidae, Salthicidae, Dolichopodidae, while among parasitoids, the most frequent families were Eurytomydae, Braconidae, Tachinidae, Pteromalidae, Scelionidae, and Figitidae. In comparison to the maize/cowpea and maize/crotalaria treatments, the sole maize treatment resulted in a grain yield increase of 24.5% and 32%, respectively. However, sole maize was not statistically different to that of maize/cowpea intercropping. In conclusion, our findings suggest that maize/cowpea intercropping could be a viable alternative to sole maize cropping systems for enhancing maize yield and the abundance of beneficial insects, without increasing interspecific competition with the maize crop. Therefore, the maize/cowpea intercropping system represents a sustainable planting alternative for promoting maize grain yield and also promoting edible legume production within the system. Furthermore, the outcomes of this study can serve as a theoretical framework for increasing maize–legume intercropping profitability under growing conditions on the Yucatan Peninsula.

Photoinactivation of Colletotrichum truncatum, Corynespora cassiicola, Sclerotinia sclerotiorum and Rhizoctonia solani in soybean seeds by cationic porphyrins

AbstractGrain legume production is of great importance in the world economy, with soybeans being a major agricultural product. Among the main causes of crop losses are diseases caused by pathogens that infect seeds, such as Colletotrichum truncatum, Corynespora cassiicola, Sclerotinia sclerotiorum and Rhizoctonia solani. The fungicides used are not fully effective in controlling these diseases, and new control options are necessary. Photodynamic inactivation (PDI) may be an alternative. PDI consists of the association of a photosensitizer (PS), light and molecular oxygen aimed at the destruction of microbial cells. Porphyrins and their derivatives are aromatic tetrapyrrolic macrocyclic compounds with photosensitizing capacity. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the efficiency of PDI in the photoinactivation of C. truncatum, C. cassiicola, S. sclerotiorum and R. solani, using a mixture of cationic meso‐tetra‐aryl porphyrins as PS, being the first study to consider this formulation as PS in the photoinactivation of these pathogens. Assays were carried out with soybean seeds artificially inoculated with the different fungi, treated with the PS at 10, 50, 100 and 200 μg/ml and submitted to light under an irradiance of 50 mW/cm2. The assays were set up following the blotter test methodology. The evaluations showed significant reductions in the infection rates of the seeds in relation to the controls. The greatest reductions were 46% for C. truncatum, 95.5% for S. sclerotiorum, 87% for C. cassiicola and 92% for R. solani. The results suggest that PDI can be an important alternative to current control methods against these pathogens.

Gender and Legume Production in a Changing Climate Context: Experiences from Chipata, Eastern Zambia

This study explored legume production by female and men smallholder farmers in Chipata, in a changing climate context. The study objectives were to (i) find out how men and women smallholder legume farmers in Chipata understand climate variability, (ii) investigate how climate variability affects smallholder legume farmers and (iii) identify the different challenges faced by womenfemale and men legume farmers in Chipata. Interviews were conducted with 86 male and 86 female legume farmers selected using stratified random sampling. Purposive sampling was used to select nine key informants and focus group discussants. Qualitative data were analysed using content analysis, while quantitative data were analysed through statistical tests. About half the men and women perceived that climate change in Chipata manifested through a shorter rainy season, late start of rainy season, intra-seasonal droughts and heavy downpours. Some men (34.9%) and women (23.3%) reported that heavy downpours caused common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris) flowers to drop off. About 41% of the men farmers interviewed and 23.3% of the women reported witch weed (Striga asiaticapa) on their groundnuts (Arachis hypogaea) fields after periods of heavy rainfall. The men discussants complained that soya bean (Glycine max) fields became waterlogged after prolonged heavy rains, which delayed weeding. Women farmers had challenges accessing hybrid legume seed, inoculants and marketing legumes. Men’s challenges were low market prices for soya beans. The study recommends agricultural interventions should focus on climate-smart legume seed multiplication and certification among legume farmers and promotion of local seed-sharing networks to enhance seed diversity.

Viral metatranscriptomic approach to study the diversity of virus(es) associated with Common Bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) in the North-Western Himalayan region of India.

Plant viruses are a major threat to legume production worldwide. In recent years, new virus strains have emerged with increasing frequencies in various legume cropping systems, which demands the development of cutting-edge virus surveillance techniques. In this study, we surveyed the common bean fields of Kashmir valley for virus infection using a total of 140 symptomatic and non-symptomatic leaf samples collected from different locations. The genetic diversity of viruses was examined by high-throughput sequencing (HTS) with three viruses being identified, namely, Bean Common Mosaic Virus (BCMV), Bean Common Mosaic Necrosis Virus (BCMNV), and Clover Yellow Vein Virus (ClYVV). BCMNV and ClYVV are new reports from India. De novo assembly of transcriptome constructed near-complete genomes of these viruses. RT-PCR results confirmed the presence of these viruses with an emerge incidence of 56. 4% for BCMV, 27.1% for BCMNV and 16.4 for ClYVV in the valley. Several samples were found to contain multiple virus infections with BCMV being the most predominant. Recombination events were detected in the genomes of BCMV and ClYVV, but not BCMNV. Phylogenetic and pairwise identity matrix evidence suggests viral import from multiple countries. Our results demonstrate that HTS followed by multiplex PCR assay is a simple, rapid, and reliable approach for simultaneous diagnosis of plant viruses.

Effects of Government Water Supply on the Smallholder Farmers’ Sustainable Nutrition in Togo

Water shortage is a global problem. It is predominantly visible in the agricultural sector and in farming communities. Togo is not an exception in this regard because some rural agricultural communities do not have access to water but rely on distance conveyance. Government is under constitutional obligation to supply water in rural areas to boost crop production off rain seasons especially. Can Government Water subsidy improve smallholder farmers’ nutrition? This study, therefore, aims at investigating the impact of Government Water Supply (GWS) on the household of Kara agricultural region in Togo. A two-stage sampling procedure was employed to collect panel data during 2016-2017 and 2017-2018 cropping seasons. Different from previous studies, robust fixed effects regression is used to model the effect of government water subsidy. The core findings reveal that water subsidy improves farm household’s nutrition. The results also indicate that subsidized water influences available per capita calories per day, household’s months of good nutrition, and the probability of being well nourished from own production of cereals and legumes but has statistically insignificant effects on household annual consumption expenditure. The results provide several valuable insights from the policy point of view. A water supply subsidy program has a higher and better influence on the maximum good nutrition, bringing up the question of whether targeting households in the lowest food crops production percentiles give value for money to achieve the goal of sustainable nutrition.

Bioactive peptides in fermented foods and their application: a critical review

Bioactive peptides are released during the production of fermented dairy, vegetables, fruits, legumes, fish, and meat products. The proteolytic specificity of lactic acid bacteria, Bacillus spp., yeasts, and mold, apart from their ability to synthesize bioactive peptides, plays an important role in the generation of specific bioactive peptides in traditional fermented foods. Controlled fermentation using defined starter strains has been explored for the development of bioactive peptides enriched novel fermented foods with potential functionality. Bioactive peptides enriched foods exert diverse health benefits, such as antioxidant, antihypertensive, antidiabetic, and immunomodulatory effects. Bioactive peptides can be used as alternatives to synthetic compounds due to negligible side effects and high valuation in the nutraceutical and functional food market. However, challenges associated with the identification, quantification, organoleptic properties, and bioavailability of bioactive peptides need to be addressed before exploiting the potential of bioactive peptides in the functional food industry. In the present review, we have discussed the production of bioactive peptides in diverse fermented foods. Structural and sequence specificity of peptides and their effect on the expression of distinct health beneficial effects have been described. The potential of utilizing these bioactive peptides for the development of novel functional fermented foods is discussed. Recent advances in peptide identification, quantification, debittering of peptides, and increasing peptide bioavailability have been explained.

Food Legume Production Performance in Support of World Food

Over the past 50 years (1970-2020) the world's population has risen by an average of 1.49% per year so that in 2020 it reached 7.79 billion people. This increase automatically increases food needs. While to this day there are still over 820 million undernourished people. Food legumes have enormous potential in supporting food security because they are rich in nutrients, including high energy, protein, carbohydrate, fiber, and other nutrients. Even among them, like chickpeas have higher energy content than some major cereal crops. Food legumes production continues to increase from year to year. Compared to three decades ago, soybean annual production more than tripled with production in 2017 reaching 352.2 million tons, as well as pulses that increased more than 35 million tons with production in 2017 reaching 96 million tons. These improvements are not only supported by field expansion, but also the impact of technological improvements which have effect on increasing yield. This review describes the trends in increasing production and yield of food legumes, as well as the progress of breeding technologies in order to increase diversities have impact on increasing the yields and adaptation against the environment. These explanations are discussed in each food legume species

​Evaluation of Legume Farming in Turkey and Agricultural Sustainability

Background: Legume production and consumption are essential concepts for sustainability of functional food production, food safety and agricultural sustainability. Production of legumes fluctuates owing to various reasons. The present research aimed to identify current situations and find solutions to sustainability principles. Additionally, the current situation about legume farming in Turkey, the sector situation, future expectations, facilities, strengths and weaknesses, targets, suggestions, plans, as well as the effect on input costs for legumes, profitability, economic and productivity factors, etc. production components on key sustainability issues were evaluated. Methods: In this research during 2021, survey was realized by 200 legume growers in Uºak province with face to face method. In addition to the results obtained, evaluations were made to ensure sustainability by conducting extensive research. Result: Investigation of this research showed that, legume cultivation is mostly done in small areas, crop rotation is applied with cereals, certified seeds are less preferred due to their expensiveness, pneumatic seeder is used while top fertilizer is not applied. The vast majority of farmers stated that they were not satisfied with legume cultivation. Additionally, there is need for development of better adapted and qualified varieties, standardization of products and easy market opportunity, better cost of input and regulation of product price, well planned schedule for import and political supports.

Effects of the soil compaction on root growth of cover crops in the western Amazon

The intensification of agriculture has increased the traffic of heavy machines, which can cause soil compaction, becoming a limiting factor for plant growth and development. The aim of this work was to evaluate the effects of machine traffic on soil physical attributes, root growth and dry mass production of legumes and grasses cultivated as cover. The experiment was carried in Rolim de Moura (RO). The experimental design was randomized blocks, in a split-plot scheme, with three replications. The treatments in the plots consisted of four induced soil compaction states: 0, 1, 4, 7 passes of an agricultural tractor, and in the subplots four cover crops species: Crotalaria, Stylosanthes, Millet and Palisadegrass. After two days of intense rainfall, compaction was carried out by passing the wheelsets of a New Holland-TL85E agricultural tractor, with 88hp of power, 4x2 TDA, standard tires 7.5x16 and 18.4x34, with blowing pressure of 110 kPa and 124 kPa, with a total mass of 3.16 Mg. Density, microporosity, macroporosity and total porosity were evaluated, surface area, root length and diameter and dry mass were also evaluated. During the period of full flowering of each crop, trenches were opened in each subplot for root evaluation and deformed soil and shoot dry mass samples were collected for evaluation. Significant discrepancies were observed for the physical attributes evaluated, surface area, length and root diameter of grasses in relation to legumes. After a tractor pass, there is an increase in soil density, and reductions in macroporosity and total porosity.

Molecular epidemiology on seasonal variation of yellow mosaic disease incidence in blackgram (Vigna mungo L. Hepper) with its vector Bemisia tabaci.

The yellow mosaic disease (YMD) of blackgram caused by Mungbean yellow mosaic virus has emerged as a serious threat to grain legume production, especially in Southeastern Asia. Seasonal incidence of YMD with its vector population was assessed in three different agroclimatic zones of Tamil Nadu in India for three consecutive cropping seasons namely, Rabi 2018 (October-December), Summer 2019 (March-May), and Kharif 2019 (June-August) at three different time intervals viz., 20, 40, and 60days after sowing (DAS). For all three seasons, disease incidence and whitefly count were recorded for a resistant and susceptible variety of blackgram in fields without any vector control intervention. The highest disease incidence (87%) was observed in the Panpozhi location during the summer season followed by Vamban and Coimbatore locations. The whitefly count was made through both visual count and yellow sticky traps. The whitefly population was highest at 20 DAS and decreased with the increasing age of crop for all the three locations assessed. Molecular epidemiology was analyzed by determining latent infection of mungbean yellow mosaic virus (MYMV) using molecular diagnosis. Latent infection was found to be well pronounced in the Coimbatore location during the Kharif season, where the crop was asymptomatic in both the resistant and susceptible varieties for all the three time periods assessed. The latent infection of MYMV observed in Coimbatore and Vamban ranged from 16.6 to 83.3% in both resistant and susceptible varieties for all three seasons. In Panpozhi, the latent infection of MYMV ranged from 16.6 to 66.6% for the susceptible variety (CO-5) for all three seasons observed. However, in the Panpozhi location, the resistant variety (VBN-8) failed to record any latent infection.