Winter hardiness in faba bean: Physiology and breeding

Adaptation of Boreal Field Crop Production to Climate Change

“…The crop canopy is leafy in early spring before the spring crops are sown and thus, the canopy can make better use of incoming radiation ( Figure 5). Many of the same principles apply to autumn-sown broadleaf crops with an indeterminate growth habit, such as faba bean (Link et al, 2010) and turnip rape (Mäkelä et al, 2011). Warmer soil temperature increased the green leaf area index, above-ground biomass, and nitrogen content during early developmental stages of winter wheat, without significantly affecting the generative stages and yield of the crop (Patil et al, 2010).…”

“…Good management practises, such as timely sowing, appropriate fungicide applications, and avoidance of too dense canopies in the autumn will further decrease the incidence of snow mould. Good frost hardiness is already available in a range of winter-annual crops, including rye, wheat (Hömmö, 1994), turnip rape (Mäkelä et al, 2011) and faba bean (Link et al, 2010), so winter damage due to cold temperatures will be less frequent in future, but resistance to the other stresses needs to be improved.…”

“…In many annual crops, brief episodes of hot temperatures (>32-36°C) or a single night frost are well known to cause severe damage at flowering, and as a consequence reduce crop yield. Faba bean ovules, for example, are susceptible to a fraction of a degree of frost (Link et al, 2010). Delaying time of flowering can be used to optimize biomass production where the whole plant is used.…”

Irrigation of Field Crops in the Boreal Region

“…Pahkala et al (1991) reported a decrease in -linolenic acid and an increase in oleic acid concentration in ripening seeds of turnip rape after frost. Cool-season grain legumes are tolerant to frost at later stages of pod filling (Stoddard et al, 2006;Link et al, 2010;F. L. Stoddard, personal communication).…”

“…According to McKenzie et al (1982), it seems that early maturing cultivars are more sensitive to frost than late maturing cultivars. Coolseason grain legumes are tolerant to frost at the vegetative stage, but pollen and flower structures are sensitive to low temperatures (Stoddard et al, 2006;Link et al, 2010;F. L. Stoddard, personal communication).…”