Agronomy 3 (Crop Production)

AG 0103

LECTURE 5(Legumes)

By

Nasser El-GizawyProfessor of Agronomy |Benha University

E-mail: Nasser@bu.edu.eg

2015/2016

Agricultural Biotechnology Program

(3 CREDIT HOURS))

Rules

13 24

Quiz

The image shows a :

oil seed crop product

spice crop product

fibre crop product

cereal crop product

Student Learning Objectives

• Identify legumes and its uses.

• Identify areas where legumes is grown.

• Describe legumes plants.

• Describe the soil and climatic requirements of legumesplants.

• Explain the cultural practices of legumes production.

Legumes

• The legumes are all members of a single plant family, the Fabaceae.

• Beans, peas, lentils, soybeans, peanuts, alfalfa, clover, and more.

• Why they are important: nitrogen fixation.

– Bacteria in root nodules convert nitrogen gas into usable forms.

– This makes legumes the most important source of protein in the plant world.

– Also makes them good natural fertilizer

Fabaceae = Leguminosae

Legume family (also called bean family or pea family)

Family characteristics

• Five-petalled irregular flower with bilateral symmetry

• Fruit is a legume (dry dehiscent fruit - two lines of dehiscence) with one row of seeds

• Seeds contain two large cotyledons

Legume flower

Banner petal

keel

wing

Stamens: 9 + 1

Legumes and nitrogen-fixing bacteria

• High protein correlated with root nodules which contain nitrogen-fixing bacteria

– convert atmospheric nitrogen to useful form

• Because of this legumes enrich the soil

– Farmers often rotate legumes with crops that deplete soil nitrogen (soybean & corn)

– "Green manure" crops plowed sometimes

– Reduces need for fertilizers - legumes can be cultivated worldwide - even in poor soils

Nitrogen cycle

• Nitrogen

– essential elements for all living organisms

– major component of amino acids, proteins, nucleic acids

• Nitrogen gas (N2) about 79% of the air

– most living organisms cannot use this form of nitrogen

Nitrogen-fixing bacteria

• Certain bacteria and cyanobacteria have ability to reduce nitrogen (N2) gas to ammonium NH4

+

– cells can convert NH4+ to compounds

– called nitrogen-fixation

– organisms are called nitrogen-fixing

Nitrogen fixation

• The roots of most legumes form associations with bacteria that can fix atmospheric nitrogen.

• These Rhizobium species live in nodules on the roots.

• They provide “free” fertilizer.

• Flowering plants cannot use atmospheric nitrogen but must absorb nitrate or ammonium nitrogen through the roots.

Nitrogen compounds in soil

• Some plants take up ammonium directly

• Bacteria in the soil quickly convert ammonium to nitrite (NO2) and then nitrate - (NO3)

• Nitrate is the form of nitrogen usually absorbed by plants

• Fertilizer contain a mixture of both ammonium and nitrate

Nitrogen Cycle

NH4

NO2

NO3

bacteria

bacteria bacteria

Non-legumeplants

Nutritional value

• Legumes rich in protein (nitrogen).

• Many are in the 20-30% range.

• Legumes also contain some fats but usually

less starches than cereal grains.

• Legume seeds have more of some amino

acids than cereal grains.

Legume seeds

• Important food staple worldwide

• Rich in both oil and protein– Higher in protein than

any other food plants

– Close to animal meat in protein quality

– Often called "poor man's meat"

Important points

• Legumes fix nitrogen

• Legumes rich in protein

• Legumes easily stored and harvested

Broad Beans

Vicia faba – from Mediterranean region,

cultivated 8800 yrs ago.

Faba bean ( Vicia faba , L.) is one of the principal food legume crop in Egypt. It is a good source of protein and it is popular in human nutration in most of Arab countries. As the world population increased a great effects must be done to increase its production per unit area especially in developing countries.

Broad Beans

Faba bean varieties:-

• 1- Giza 716

• 2- Giza 461

• 3- Giza 843

• 4- Sakha 1

• Faba bean varieties were developed by the legumes Research Section of the Agricultural Research Center, Giza, Egypt.

Broad Beans

Sowing date

• The beans are sown on September or October. The more important point is to sow the crop early enough to get the seed hardening before the hot wind prevails.

• These do much damage to the crop if the seed is not fully formed, shriveling the pods and stopping further growth.

Cultivation methods

• Dry method (Afir)

The land is ploughed, pressed and divided into small plots, seeding in rows 40 cm apart and pits 20 cm apart and irrigation is last treatment.

• Wet methods (Heraty)

At ridges: the seeds are sown in ridges (12-14 ridges/7m). Seeds planted at the two sides of ridge in pits 20 cm apart. At most cases the wet seeds soaked to about 12 hours in water using at this method.

Cultivation methods

Cultivation methods

Cultivation methods

Cultivation methods

Cultivation methods

Cultivation methods

Cultivation methods

Seed rate

• The amount of seeds used ranging from 40 -70 kgs/fed. Depending on cultivation method.

Replanting and thining

• Replanting and thining for beans must be done before the first watering. Two strong plants chosen in every pit. The farmers are using the wet seeds for replanting.

Fertilizers

• Broad bean is a leguminous crop. It requires no nitrogen fertilizers in most cases. Sometimes using 25-50 kgs/N fed before the first watering increased the yield. Broad bean responds to superphosphate fertilizers, about 200 kgs/fed applying to it, before plowing.

Fertilizers

Irrigation

Under canal irrigation, it receives two or three watering. It is considered advantageous to give one watering when flowering.

Harvesting

• The crop ripens in about four months an a half to five months, and the upper Egypt begins to be harvest about March.

• About 6-7 ardabs (155 kg) of seeds and one ton of hay may be taken as an average.

Lentils

Lens culinaris – genus name refers to

shape of seeds

The lentil (Lens culinaris) is an edible pulse. It is a bushy annual plant of the legume family, known for its lens-shaped seeds. It is about 40 cm (16 in) tall, and the seeds grow in pods, usually with two seeds in each.

Lentils

varieties:-

• 1- Giza 9

• 2- Giza 51

• Lentils varieties were developed by the legumes Research Section of the Agricultural Research Center, Giza, Egypt.

Lentils

Chickpeas (Cicer arietinum,L.)

Chickpeas (Cicer arietinum,L.)

Chickpeas (Cicer arietinum,L.) is one of the important grain Legumes cultivated in Egypt many year ago. It is grown as winter crop and cultivated successfully in traditional area where clay soil prevalence and in new reclaimed area having sandy soil.

varieties:-

• 1- Giza 3

• 2- Giza 531

• 3- Giza 195

• 4- Giza 4

chickpeas varieties were developed by the legumes Research Section of the Agricultural Research Center, Giza, Egypt.

Chickpeas

LUPINE (Lupinus termis,L)

Lupine is considered one of the legumes with the promising future potential due to its high protein content as well as its adaptation to poor soils and dry climates. It has been used as a green manure, forage and seeds for human usage because of its high protein content. Like other seed legumes, lupinplant is able to fix atmospheric nitrogen in the soil that increase soil fertility with no additional cost or effort particularly in reclaimed soils and, therefore lupin appear to have useful effect in such areas.

LUPINE (Lupinus termis,L)

varieties:-

• 1- Giza 1

• 2- Giza 2

Lupine varieties were developed by the legumes Research Section of the Agricultural Research Center, Giza, Egypt.

LUPINE

The End!