Narbon vetch (Vicia narbonensis L.): A potential feed legume crop for dry areas in West Asia

• Published in: Journal of agronomy and crop science (1986) Vol. 169; no. 5; pp. 347 - 353
• Main Author: Abd El Moneim, A. M.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford, UK Blackwell Publishing Ltd 01.11.1992; Blackwell
• Subjects: adaptation; Adaptation to environment and cultivation conditions; Agronomy. Soil science and plant productions; ARID ZONES; Biological and medical sciences; COLD; cold tolerance; CROP YIELD; crude protein; DROUGHT RESISTANCE; ESTABLECIMIENTO DE PLANTAS; ETABLISSEMENT DE LA PLANTE; FRIO; FROID; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Genetics and breeding of economic plants; grain yield; HARVEST INDEX; INDICE DE RECOLTE; narbon vetch; PLANT ESTABLISHMENT; PROTEINAS; PROTEINE; PROTEINS; RELACION GRANO PAJA; RENDEMENT DES CULTURES; RENDIMIENTO DE CULTIVOS; RESISTANCE A LA SECHERESSE; RESISTANCE A LA TEMPERATURE; RESISTENCIA A LA SEQUIA; RESISTENCIA A LA TEMPERATURA; SIRIA; SYRIA; SYRIE; TEMPERATURE RESISTANCE; Varietal selection. Specialized plant breeding, plant breeding aims; VICIA NARBONENSIS; ZONA ARIDA; ZONE ARIDE; West asia; Asia; Syria; Grains; Arid environment; Cold resistance; Genotype; Potential; Line (plant); Field experiment; Harvest index; Grain legume; Leguminosae; Dicotyledones; Angiospermae; Plant protein; Spermatophyta; Yield; Vicia narbonensis; Adaptation
• ISSN: 0931-2250; 1439-037X
• DOI: 10.1111/j.1439-037X.1992.tb01046.x

Provision of feed supplies for the rapidly growing livestock population is essential in West Asia. Shortages can be alleviated by growing forage crops in the existing fallow lands. Narbon vetch (Vicia narbonensis L.) is a leguminous species with high yield potential, drought tolerance and cold resistance. It could be used for grain and straw production as source for animal feed in dry areas. It is good source of protein with seeds contain 28 % protein yielding 364 kg per hectare protein, whilst straw contains 9 % protein and yields a similar amounts of digestible protein per hectare. Nine promising lines of Narbon vetch developed at ICARDA were tested at two sites over four years under rainfed conditions. Since climatic conditions were considered to be of considerable importance, each site in each year was treated as a separate environment to give eight environments with annual rainfall varied from 195 to 504 mm. Narbon vetch possessed high seedling vigour with rapid winter growth and negligible cold damage. Grain yield varied form 0.47 to 1.90 t/ha, with a harvest index varying from 30 to 40 %. The data indicated that below 300 mm rainfall the grain yield varied from 0.47 t/ha when rain fall was 195 mm to 1.4 t/ha when rainfall was 245 mm. Most of the lines had wide adaptation to dry areas in terms of both grain yield and stability. Climate, except early spring rains had little effect on biological and grain yields.